Ex-chief approves tapping of President Prabowo
Police identified Slamet Uliandi, a former monitoring chief, as the latest suspect in the scandal involving President Prabowo Subianto.
By Thiago Kovalenko ·
Indonesian police named a fourth suspect in the wiretapping scandal on Thursday. The new suspect is Slamet Uliandi, a senior official identified by the initials SU. He served as the monitoring chief at the Criminal Investigation Agency from 2010 to 2019. Uliandi also led the agency's information and technology unit from 2021 to 2026.
Investigators say Uliandi approved the wiretapping of President Prabowo Subianto's communications. Cybercrime unit director Suhermanto spoke at a news conference late Thursday. He stated that the other two suspects obtained approval from Uliandi before tapping the lines. Suhermanto added that they also asked for permission before deleting the interception records. Uliandi has not been detained yet because of a health condition.
Three other senior police officers were arrested earlier this week. The group includes Listyo Sigit Prabowo, the former national police chief. Sigit also serves as Prabowo's chief of staff. He is widely viewed as a loyalist to Joko Widodo, the former president and current prime minister. The scandal has widened the political gap between the current leader and his predecessor.
The case is adding pressure on Prabowo's administration. Public dissatisfaction is rising over costly populist policies. Investor confidence is also weakening in Indonesia's $1.5 trillion economy. Police are still investigating the motives behind the attempts to intercept the president's calls. Investigators have questioned 13 police officers and five criminal and IT experts so far.
The national police chief formed a special team to handle the case, according to spokesperson Trunoyudo Wisnu Andiko. Thousands of troops were deployed to Jakarta following the revelations. Military tents and buses appeared in the capital, along with a small number of soldiers. The city remained calm on Thursday and Friday despite the heavy security presence.
Prabowo took office in 2024 after winning the election as the continuity candidate for Widodo. Widodo's son, Gibran Rakabuming Raka, was elected as Prabowo's vice president in the same vote. Lawmakers are now considering a probe into Raka's eligibility. This review could be the first step toward removing him from office.
