Flood-hit cop granted lower bail
BUTTERWORTH: A lance corporal who claimed trial to a charge of accepting a bribe at the sessions court here successfully pleaded to have his bail reduced on compassionate grounds.
The accused, Mohd Syafiq Abd Rahman, 27, told the court he was a victim of the recent floods in Penang in which his motorcycle and car were damaged on Nov 5.
Deputy public prosecutor Amin Yaccub suggested bail of RM10,000 in one surety.
Mohd Syafiq responded by seeking a lower bail. Besides telling judge Sitarun Nisa Abdul Aziz his predicament owing to the floods, he said he needed to care for his parents, who are residing in Johor, and his second child who is just a few months old.
When Sitarun Nisa asked the accused how much reduction he wanted, Mohd Syafiq said he could only afford to pay RM5,000.
She then fixed bail at RM3,000 in one surety and also set Dec 15 for the submission of documents.
Mohd Syafiq, who worked in the multi-purpose vehicle division at the northeast district police headquarters, had allegedly coaxed RM300 from a businessman Badrul Hisham Ahmad, 37.
The bribery was an inducement for the accused to not take action against Badrul Hisham, who was believed to have impersonated a policeman by using a police cooperative card (Kad Koperasi Bekas Polis).
He had allegedly taken the bribe at Lorong Relau 3 in Bukit Jambul at about 8pm on Oct 13 last year.