Four border enforcement officers remanded over latest 'flying passport' case
The officers in their 20s and 40s are attached with the Customs, Immigration and Quarantine (CIQ) complex in Bangunan Sultan Iskandar here, were arrested yesterday.
They are suspected of accepting about RM3,000 in bribes while manning the motor vehicle entry zone at the Johor border.
Magistrate Mohammad Izham Mohd Aliyas granted the remand order until Aug 1, following a request by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) at the Johor Baru magistrate's court this morning.
A MACC sources said two of the officers were arrested by the Border Control and Protection Agency Compliance Unit during a surprise inspection on Friday, before they were handed over to the MACC.
Two other personnel were detained later for the same offence dubbed the "flying passport" scam, where passports are stamped without the holder being physically present at the checkpoint.
During the arrests yesterday, MACC officers seized 14 foreign passports, four mobile phones and cash believed to be bribes totalling RM3,000.
"Preliminary investigations suggest the cash and mobile phones were linked to corrupt transactions involving forged immigration records," the source said.
Each suspect is believed to have received about RM200 for every passport stamped without verifying the traveller's presence.
Johor MACC deputy director (Operations) Hairul Ilham Hamzah confirmed the arrests and said the case is investigated under Section 17(a) of the MACC Act 2009 which criminalises the act of offering or giving bribes to secure business or personal advantage.
Offenders face a fine of at least 10 times the bribe amount or RM1 million—, whichever is higher— and/or up to 20 years' imprisonment.
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