Jakarta. The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) conducted an overnight interrogation of Pati Regent Sudewo on Monday as part of an investigation into alleged corruption in the appointment of village officials in Central Java. This is the second arrest the antigraft body made in one day, after detaining East Java's Madiun Mayor Maidi.

“Correct, one of the parties arrested in the incident in Pati is SDW (Sudewo),” KPK spokesman Budi Prasetyo told reporters in Jakarta, confirming the regent’s detention. The marathon questioning began at around 1 a.m. local time at the Kudus Police headquarters.

According to information obtained by local media, investigators also questioned the head of the Jaken subdistrict in Pati as they probed suspected gratification and bribery linked to the selection of village-level positions. The investigation centers on allegations that the recruitment of village officials did not follow proper procedures and involved the sale of posts for personal gain.

KPK officials said the early-morning questioning was aimed at accelerating the collection of preliminary evidence before deciding on the legal status of those examined. Investigators are now synchronizing witness testimonies with seized documents to map the flow of funds allegedly involving senior local executive officials.

Under Indonesian law, the KPK has up to 24 hours from the time of arrest to determine whether detainees will be formally named as suspects and to announce case details.

The Pati case came on the same day as another major KPK sting operation in East Java, marking the agency’s second and third operations so far in 2026.

Earlier on Monday, the KPK detained Madiun Mayor Maidi and 14 other individuals in a separate operation over alleged kickbacks tied to government-funded projects and corporate social responsibility (CSR) programs in the city of Madiun.

“This sting operation is suspected to be related to project fees and CSR funds in the City of Madiun,” Budi said in a statement.

Investigators seized hundreds of millions of rupiah in cash during the operation, though the exact amount was still being counted. Of the 15 people detained, nine — including Maidi — were flown to Jakarta for further questioning at the KPK’s headquarters, known as the Red and White Building, in South Jakarta. The remaining individuals continued to be processed in the region.

Maidi, a member of the Gerindra Party, is serving his second term as mayor for the 2025–2030 period, having previously held the post from 2019 to 2024. Before entering electoral politics, he spent decades in the Madiun city administration, beginning his career as a high school geography teacher in 1989 and later holding senior roles in the education office, the local revenue agency and, ultimately, city secretary from 2009 to 2018.

The series of arrests adds to the KPK’s caseload at the start of the year. Its first operation of 2026 took place between Jan. 9 and 10, when eight people were arrested in a case that later resulted in five suspects being named. That investigation involved an alleged bribery scheme to reduce corporate tax payments by nickel mining firm Wanatiara Persada at the North Jakarta Medium Tax Office.

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