Wife Chief Judge Banned from Travelling Abroad

Jakarta (Antara) - The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) has banned the wife of Constitutional Court Chief Justice Akil Mochtar, who has recently been named a suspect of a bribery case, from travelling abroad. "KPK has issued new travel bans - one for Ratu Rita Akil and another for Daryano," said Deputy Minister of Justice Denny Indrayana on Thursday. Ratu Rita is the wife of Akil Mochtar, while Daryono is Akil Mochtar's driver. "The ban, issued on October 9, 2013, is for the purpose of investigation into an alleged corruption case linked to a local election dispute involving Akil Mochtar," he said. With the latest bans, KPK has so far banned five people from travelling abroad. The other three affected by KPK bans are Banten Province Governor Ratu Atut Chosiyah and candidates of Lebak District Head and Deputy Head, Amir Hamzah and Kasmin bin Saelan, respectively. On Wednesday, Akil's lawyer, Tamsil Sjoekoer, admitted that Akil's wife had established a company in 2010, looking into plantations, mining and "arwana" fish species (scleropages formosus) fisheries. "That is what I heard from Mrs Akil. Mr Akil was not on the list of board of directors," he said. Daryono, meanwhile, has been found to be the owner of one of Akil Mochtar's cars, namely a Mercedez Bens S 350. Two of Akil's cars that have been confiscated by KPK are Audi Q5 and Toyota Crown Athlete. Until now, Daryono's whereabouts are not known and he has failed to meet KPK's summons for questioning. (*)