Jakarta. The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) said anti-graft enforcement accelerated sharply in the first half of 2026, carrying out 12 sting operations that led to the arrests of seven regional leaders and several government officials.

KPK Chairman Setyo Budiyanto said the spike in operations targeting regents and mayors had drawn significant public attention, but stressed that the agency pursues cases solely based on evidence and applies the law equally.

"The phenomenon attracting the greatest public and media attention is the high number of sting operations involving regional leaders," Setyo said during a press conference presenting the agency's first-half performance on Thursday. "The KPK enforces the law without discrimination."

The agency's 12 sting operations through June marked a sharp increase from just two operations during the same period last year.

Seven of the operations resulted in the arrests of district heads and mayors, including the regents of Pati, Pekalongan, Rejang Lebong, Cilacap, Tulungagung and Muara Enim, as well as the mayor of Madiun.

The remaining operations targeted alleged corruption involving the Jakarta Medium Tax Office, the Banjarmasin Primary Tax Office, the Directorate General of Customs and Excise, the Depok District Court, and the Ministry of Immigration and Corrections.

The cases involve allegations ranging from bribery related to public procurement projects and illegal gratuities to extortion and conflicts of interest.

Beyond arrests, the KPK said it had issued 72 investigation orders during the first six months of the year as part of preliminary inquiries into suspected corruption cases.

The agency also referred 76 cases to court during the period, up from 46 in the first half of 2025. A total of 119 defendants are currently standing trial in KPK prosecutions.

Asset recovery remained another focus of the agency's anti-corruption strategy. Through its asset recovery directorate, the KPK deposited Rp 59.99 billion ($3.6 million) into the state treasury from the auction of 117 confiscated assets.

"The KPK believes that fighting corruption is not merely about imprisoning offenders, but also about recovering state losses," Setyo said.

The auctioned assets included land, residential properties, apartments, gold bullion and luxury goods seized in corruption cases involving several former public officials, including former Cirebon Regent Sunjaya Purwadisastra, former Probolinggo Regent Puput Tantriana Sari, former Mojokerto Regent Mustofa Kamal Pasa, former Supreme Court Justice Gazalba Saleh and former Bengkulu Governor Rohidin Mersyah.

Separately, the KPK transferred confiscated state assets worth Rp 229.8 billion to government institutions for public use.

Among them was a confiscated house belonging to former tax official Rafael Alun Trisambodo, valued at Rp 42.2 billion, which will be used by the KPK. Assets worth Rp 40.9 billion seized in the corruption case involving former tax official Angin Prayitno Aji were transferred to the Attorney General's Office and the Indonesian Migrant Workers Protection Agency (BP2MI).