An Indonesian fashion designer who shot to global fame with her Muslim-themed collection was sentenced to 18 years in prison on Wednesday for a multimillion dollar fraud and money-laundering.
A court near Jakarta convicted Anniesa Hasibuan, 31, and her husband of cheating customers who booked pilgrimage trips to Islam's holiest city Makkah through a travel agency they operated.
The pair was accused of bilking thousands of clients out of at least 848 billion rupiah (Dh225.5 million), a steep fall from grace for Hasibuan who had become a household name in the world's biggest Muslim-majority country.
In 2016 Hasibuan's collection was shown at New York Fashion Week where all her runway models wore hijab head scarves and Muslim-inspired designs, a first for the prestigious event.
Hasibuan and her husband Andika Surachman established Jakarta-based First Travel in 2009 to operate trips to Saudi Arabia. But it had not sent any clients to Makkah since early last year despite being paid for them, the court heard.
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The court fined Hasibuan 10 billion rupiah and sentenced her spouse to 20 years in prison. He was slapped with the same fine.
Prosecutors had demanded 20-year prison terms for both.
"[The defendants] have been proven legally and convincingly guilty of committing a criminal act together," said presiding judge Sobandi, who like many Indonesians goes by one name.
She is also well-known for her lavish lifestyle, regularly posting pictures of herself and her husband travelling abroad and wearing expensive clothing.
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In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
