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KUALA LUMPUR: Seven Johor Bahru immigration officers have been charged in four states with taking bribes in connection with the abuse of entry and exit stamps in foreign passports.
Five officers pleaded guilty to various charges and three of them were sentenced to between 30 days and 12 months in prison and fined between RM12,000 and RM30,000 each. Two other officers will be sentenced on December 22.
All seven were arrested during Op Selat, launched by Malaysia’s Anti-Corruption Commission and the Department of Immigration to stamp out unions that have forged entry stamps at the country’s borders.
All the agents faced charges for accepting money from people who have official employment ties to them. The charges, according to the Penal Code, carry prison sentences that do not exceed two years and a fine or both. All the crimes were allegedly committed between April 2018 and September 22 of this year.
All seven also faced optional charges for failing to report bribery offenses to the MACC and could face jail terms of up to 10 years, fines of up to RM100,000, or both.
Those who pleaded guilty
Azhar Ahmad M Salbi, 27, was jailed for 12 months and fined RM20,000 or six months in prison instead, for failing to report a RM1250 bribe given to him by two men through his savings account in the CIMB bank in Segamat.
Akashah Roslan, 38, was jailed for 30 days and fined RM12,000 or four months in jail, after pleading guilty to three counts of obtaining RM3,060 from a man deposited into his CIMB savings account in Bandar Bayan Baru , Butterworth.
Muhammad Shafiq Suboh, 29, was fined RM30,000 or 18 months in jail after pleading guilty to three optional counts of failing to report to the MACC bribes worth RM1,480 that a man gave him and paid in the CIMB bank in Batu Berendam. , Melaka.
Mohamad Hariss Rosli, 27, pleaded guilty to 18 charges related to bribery amounting to RM51,300. The court set December 22 for sentencing.
Hariss had been charged with 31 counts of obtaining money worth RM 132,020 from various people through his Islamic Maybank account in Kota Bharu, Kelantan.
Fasmawi Ab Wahab, 24, pleaded guilty to two counts of accepting RM1,400 through his Maybank Islamic Bhd account in Tumpat, Kelantan. The court set December 22 for sentencing.
They pleaded not guilty
Syafik Abu Khalipah, 25, has pleaded not guilty to seven counts of accepting RM24,395 from two same men in Larkin Perdana, Johor Bahru, and two optional counts of failing to report RM24,395 bribes given to him by the same people.
Baliyan Mohd Bhanudin, 32, pleaded not guilty to four counts of obtaining RM7,120 from two people and four optional counts of failing to report the same amount of bribes that the same person gave to the MACC, in a bank in Section 20 ., Shah Alam.
The court set January 18 next year for the case to be brought up again.
Mohamad Hariss Rosli, 27, has pleaded not guilty to 13 charges related to bribery worth RM81,000 from various individuals through his Maybank Islamic account in Kota Bharu, Kelantan.
All seven officers worked at the Immigration Department in Bangunan Sultan Iskandar, Johor Bahru.
Bangladesh fined for offering bribery
A Bangladeshi man, Ahmmed Md Rana, 37, was fined RM 10,000 or 12 months in jail after pleading guilty to offering RM 8,500 in bribes to an immigration officer at Kuala Lumpur International Airport. The bribes were for allowing eight of his compatriots to return to their country without facing legal action.
