Indian-origin man poses as ‘CIA agent’ to secure Indonesia defence deal: Report
Gaurav Srivastava with Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto. (Photo: X/@KantInEastt)An Indian-origin businessman is accused of pretending to be a CIA officer to get close to Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto and help push through defence deals worth billions of dollars, according to an investigation by the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP).
The allegations come from civil lawsuits filed in California and New York by Niels Troost, the businessman’s former business partner. Troost claims he had given the businessman, Gaurav Srivastava, a 50% stake in his company. Based on court documents from these cases, OCCRP reports that Srivastava traveled with Prabowo to important meetings in Washington and Jakarta in 2020. These meetings reportedly included talks about major military purchases, such as fighter jets and other equipment.
According to the lawsuits, Srivastava told people in recorded calls that he worked for the CIA. OCCRP’s reporting indicates he used that claim to gain the confidence of senior Indonesian officials, including Hashim Djojohadikusumo Prabowo’s brother and chairman of the Arsari Group and to secure entry into high-level government discussions.
Srivastava is also said to have claimed credit for identifying those behind the 2002 Bali bombings, an attack that killed more than 200 people, and for helping get Prabowo removed from a US immigration blacklist.
Who is Gaurav Srivastava?
Srivastava is an Indian-origin businessman who reportedly cultivated a close relationship with Prabowo Subianto during the years Subianto served as Indonesia’s defence minister a relationship that continued after Subianto rose to the presidency. Sources cited in the OCCRP investigation say Srivastava went by the self-given nickname “Mr G” and positioned himself as a CIA operative to build credibility with Indonesian officials.
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How the deals took shape
As Per OCCRP’s report, Srivastava obtained three Letters of Intent from Indonesia in 2020 covering potential fighter jet and military equipment purchases, followed by an additional Letter of Intent and a Memorandum of Understanding in 2021 and 2022 tied to two more defence projects.
Between 2020 and 2022, four companies connected to Srivastava reportedly signed five preliminary agreements with Indonesia’s Ministry of Defence and a state-owned defence firm. The proposed packages allegedly included:
Separately, in 2022 the US formally approved a possible sale of 36 F-15 jets and associated equipment to Indonesia, in a deal valued at up to $13.9 billion.
The shell company detail
OCCRP’s investigation reportedly found that the four companies tied to Srivastava were shell entities with no prior record in defence procurement. Notably, when the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency publicly announced the F-15 sale, none of Srivastava’s companies appeared as parties to that official deal a discrepancy that raises questions about the extent of his actual role versus his claimed influence.
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(With inputs from Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP)