The head of Indonesia's largest Islamic party, Luthfi Hasan Ishaaq was arrested on suspicion of taking bribes to help a beef importer, an official said Thursday. Luthfi Hasan Ishaaq, chairman of the Prosperous Justice Party, was detained by officers of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) late Wednesday, after his aide was allegedly caught with 1 billion rupiah (102,000 dollars) in cash in his car trunk.
The aide was detained along with two executives from beef importer PT Indoguna Utama, KPK commissioner Bambang Widjojanto said.
"There's enough evidence to name Luthfi Hasan as a suspect," Widjojanto said.
Beef imports to Indonesia, particularly from trading partner Australia, are tightly regulated by government. The Prosperous Justice Party, a member of the ruling coalition, has been an outspoken critic of corruption.