10 remanded in JPJ graft probe
Deputy director among suspects held for bribery
GEORGE TOWN: A deputy director of a state Road Transport Department (JPJ) was among six individuals who have been remanded to assist in investigations into three alleged graft cases.
The Malaysian AntiCorruption Commission (MACC) brought the six suspects comprising four men and two women before a magistrate here at around 10.30am yesterday.
The state JPJ deputy director and four other suspects – two insurance agents, a clerk and an assistant enforcement personnel of a state JPJ have been remanded for five days until Sunday while the other suspect – a financial clerk at the Balik Pulau police headquarters – were remanded for four days until Saturday.
The remand order was granted by assistant court registrar Muna Maria Azmi. The suspects, in their 30s and 40s, are being investigated by the MACC under Section 16(a)(B) of the MACC Act 2009 for bribery.
According to an MACC source, the suspects were nabbed on separate occasions on Tuesday under Ops Tutup and were brought to court yesterday to obtain the remand order.
The six individuals were arrested on three separate cases involving insurance transactions, vehicle licensing and summonses.
In the first case, the 38yearold state JPJ deputy director allegedly committed the offence together with an insurance agent and a clerk at the insurance company, while he was a branch chief in Penang.
The source said the three were suspected of being involved in corruption to facilitate the business of the insurance agent without proper procedures.
Meanwhile, in the second case, the state JPJ assistant enforcement personnel, together with another insurance agent from the same company as the first case, were suspected of being involved in bribery to issue driving licenses without undergoing the proper procedures.
In the third case, the source said the financial clerk was arrested for allegedly receiving bribe money from the public in return for closing the summonses that were issued to vehicle owners.
In Kota Kinabalu, four more JPJ enforcement officers were nabbed on suspicion of receiving bribes to issue driving licences for drivers in Penang since last year.
MACC investigating officer Mohd Faliq Basiruddin said the four were brought to the magistrate’s court yesterday and have been ordered to be remanded for six days until Sept 10.
He said the four are suspected of receiving kickbacks between RM2,200 and RM3,000 for each licence issued.
However, it is unclear how many licences have been issued through these four thus far and how much bribe was involved as the police reports were lodged in Penang.
The individuals applied for drivers licences in Penang but the cards were issued from Sabah, Mohd Faliq said.
Authorities in Penang started getting suspicious after they found that the licences were issued in Sabah.