KOTA KINABALU: Five Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) officers based in Sarawak and here were remanded today for allegedly accepting bribes from foreign fishermen.
Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) obtained remand orders from the magistrate’s courts here and in Petrajaya, Sarawak against the five.
It is learnt that they were among 10 MMEA men arrested by MACC from several locations in Sabah, Sarawak, Pahang and Terengganu yesterday.
Those remanded here were logistics deputy director, 45; investigation officer, 53; and an Able Rate personnel, 39.
Magistrate Afiq Agoes granted six days’ remand on the deputy director, and five days’ each on the two others.
MACC prosecuting officer Mohd Faliq Basiruddin said the trio were detained for suspected involvement in a racket to allow foreign fishing vessels to enter Sabah waters.
"They will be investigated under Section 17 (A) of the MACC Act for soliciting/receiving gratification," he said.
In Sarawak, two of MMEA enforcement officers were each remanded for a week to facilitate probe into allowing an influx of foreign fishermen into Sarawak waters.
MACC obtained the remand on the duo, in their 50s, when they were produced before magistrate Zaiton Anuar this morning.
The duo was arrested during an operation to root out those who were in cahoots with syndicates related to the influx of foreign fishermen.
Both of them were remanded under Section 17(a) of the MACC Act 2009, which carries a maximum 20 years’ jail and RM10,000 fine or five times the value of the bribe, whichever is higher, upon conviction.
Five other people, all civilians, arrested in Bintulu and Miri in connection with the case are also expected to be remanded today.
According to MACC strategic communication unit, the commission’s director-general Tan Sri Dzulkifli Ahmad and MMEA director-general Datuk Seri Zulkifli Abu Bakar are scheduled to hold a joint press conference at the MACC headquarters in Putrajaya at noon today.