Civil engineer released on RM50,000 bail
KOTA KINABALU: A civil engineer, who was remanded for investigation into alleged embezzlement of RM1.5 billion allocation from the Rural and Regional Development Ministry meant for development projects in Sabah, was released on bail yesterday.
Magistrate Cindy Mc Juce Balitus allowed the 47-year-old man, who is also a consultant of a company, RM50,000 bail with RM15,000 deposited in two local sureties.
He was also ordered to report himself to the Malaysian AntiCorruption Commission (MACC) office once a month.
On October 20, the magistrate remanded him for six days whose remand expired yesterday.
The man, who is also Parti Warisan Sabah media representative, was remanded to assist the MACC investigation into the alleged misappropriation of the funds under Section 17 (a) of the MACC Act 2009.
Investigating officer Mohd Faliq Basiruddin appeared for MACC while counsel Loretto Padua Jr represented the man.
Meanwhile, the Sessions Court sentenced 16 foreigners, including three women, to between four to five months' jail for illegal entry into the State.
Sessions Court judge Azreena Aziz imposed the sentence on the foreigners, who were aged between 20 years and 52 years old, after they pleaded guilty as charged under Section 6 (1)(c) of the Immigration Act 1959/63.
The indictment provides for a maximum fine of RM10,000 or a jail term of up to five years, or both, and also liable to whipping of not more than six strokes of the cane, upon conviction.
Some of the men were also ordered to be whipped once while the others were spared due to their age and gender.
The court also ordered for the foreigners to be referred to the Immigration Department for their biometric data to be recorded before being deported.