Jakarta. The Attorney General’s Office denied reports of the state miner Antam causing a state loss of a whopping Rp 5.9 quadrillion or $359.5 billion. 

AGO’s spokesman Hari Siregar said that those claims that had been circulating on social media since March 7 were baseless and a hoax. 

“There is no state loss of that amount in the ongoing cases that we are dealing with,” Harli said on Monday. 

Antam is currently facing two cases at the AGO. The first one involved business tycoon Budi Said who was found guilty of fraud involving gold purchases from Antam. “We are currently dealing with two Antam cases: Budi Said and on gold stamps. We didn’t find a state loss that reaches up to Rp 5.9 quadrillion,” Harli said.

This was not the first time that Antam got embroiled in a digital hoax. On Feb. 26, there was a post that stated there were 109 tons of fake gold circulating in the public. The AGO has denied these claims.

"The gold is real. There is no indication that the gold is fake, judging by the cases that we have handled so far,” Harli said.

Antam's Standards
Antam’s corporate secretary Syarif Faisal Alkadrie said that all of the company’s gold products had met international standards. Antam’s processing and refining plants have been certified by the London Bullion Market Association (LBMA).

"All gold products that carry the Antam label that are circulating in the market are real. We can guarantee its purity,” Syarif said.

Antam is also considering taking legal action against those who have spread the hoaxes. The company also reminded the public to be wise in receiving information on social media and always verify what they have read.

"As a public company, we are supervised by various parties and are always committed to implementing good corporate governance. We appeal to the public not to panic and to check the facts before believing information," Syarif said.

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