5 M'sian immigration officers nabbed for corruption, bribed with luxury cars & gold worth RM1.6 million

Five airport immigration officers in Malaysia have been detained after they were suspected of taking bribes, the MalayMail reported.

The arrests were made between Sep. 9 and 11, as part of Op Rentas, a large-scale operation by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).

The operation aims to foil counter-syndicate settings that facilitate the entry of foreigners into Malaysia without any legal checks, in return for bribes.

The bribes

According to a TikTok post by MACC, they seized high-value items including RM20,000 (about S$6103) worth of cash, a plot of land, houses, luxury cars, handbags and about 20 branded watches.

The watches reportedly cost around RM100,000 (S$30,513) each.

The Selangor MACC also froze around 70 related bank accounts, bringing the total to a value of RM3.3 million (S$1 million).

MACC revealed that they confiscated gold weighing a total of 3.2kg, and valued at RM1.6 million (S$488,153).

In a separate video, one of the immigration officers was also found to have kept more than RM1 million in a savings account meant for a future Hajj pilgrimage.

Up to RM50,000 a month

A total of 30 people, including 18 enforcement officers, were arrested as part of the operation which took place in several states in Malaysia.

New Straits Times reported that enforcement officers involved received bribes of up to RM2,500 (S$763) for every foreign national successfully allowed into the country.

On average, officers involved would receive between RM10,000 (S$3,051) and RM50,000 (S$15,255) a month.

Investigations will be conducted as part of the MACC Act, which relates to corporate liability for bribery.

If found guilty, one can receive a jail term of up to 20 years and a fine not less than 10 times the value of the bribe, or RM1 million (S$305,095), whichever is higher.

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Top image from MACC's TikTok