Indonesia’s Musim Mas Named Environmental Crime Suspect in $11.5 Million Riverbank Case

JAKARTA, Investortrust.id — Indonesian police have named palm oil company Musim Mas a corporate suspect in an environmental crime investigation tied to illegal oil palm cultivation along a protected river buffer zone in Riau province on Sumatra island, authorities said Monday.

The Riau Police’s special crimes unit alleged that the company conducted plantation activities inside the protected banks of the Air Hitam River, a tributary of the Nilo River, in Pelalawan Regency without securing the necessary permits from water authorities.

The case adds to mounting legal and regulatory scrutiny facing Indonesia’s palm oil sector, one of the country’s largest export industries and a major source of foreign exchange earnings. Environmental enforcement has become increasingly sensitive as Jakarta seeks to balance economic growth, downstream industrial ambitions and international pressure over deforestation, biodiversity loss and carbon emissions tied to plantation expansion.

“Environmental law enforcement cannot stop at individual perpetrators,” Riau Police Special Crimes Director Sr. Comr. Ade Kuncoro said in a statement on Monday. “Corporations can also be held criminally liable if their business activities are proven to cause environmental damage and generate economic benefit for the company.”

Investigators said the plantation area in Estate IV Division F, located in Air Hitam village in Pelalawan, was cleared and planted with oil palm between 1997 and 1998. The trees began commercial production in 2002 and allegedly continued generating revenue for roughly 22 years.

Police alleged the activities violated the company’s environmental impact assessment, known locally as AMDAL, as well as several Indonesian environmental and river management regulations, including a 1990 presidential decree governing protected areas and a 1991 government regulation on river management.

Under Indonesia’s Public Works Ministry Regulation No. 28/2015, riverbank buffer zones may only be used on a limited basis and require special permits from river basin authorities.

“Based on the investigation, PT Musim Mas did not possess a riverbank utilization permit from the Sumatra III River Basin Authority,” Ade said.

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Long-Term Ecological Risks

Authorities said riverbank buffer zones serve critical ecological functions, including protecting waterways, controlling erosion and preserving environmental balance.

Police argued that oil palm cultivation in the area risked disrupting the river ecosystem and damaging long-term environmental sustainability.

“This is not merely an administrative permitting issue,” Ade said. “It concerns ecosystem protection and long-term environmental safety.”

The investigation involved a broad team of specialists, including experts in forestry zoning, water resources, environmental science, soil degradation, environmental criminal law and corporate law.

Investigators also seized corporate legal documents, environmental management reports, land concession maps, conservation area maps and laboratory test results as evidence.

Authorities estimated environmental losses in the case at Rp 187.86 billion, equivalent to roughly $11.5 million based on current exchange rates.

Scientific Approach to Environmental Crimes

Ade said investigators used what police described as a “scientific crime investigation” approach, relying heavily on technical documents, expert testimony and laboratory analysis to build the case.

“Every environmental case we handle must be scientifically proven and legally accountable,” he said. “That is why we involve experts and conduct comprehensive examinations.”

Police charged the company under Articles 98 and 99, in conjunction with Article 116, of Indonesia’s 2009 Environmental Protection and Management Law, which governs corporate criminal liability in environmental cases.

The charges carry a maximum prison sentence of 10 years and fines of up to Rp 10 billion ($611,000).