A MARRIED couple recently arrested by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) was living luxuriously and even owned a jewelry shop and gold bars from bribes received over the past four years.
The couple - both Immigration Department officers had allegedly amassed nearly RM900,000 in bribes and had used the names of their siblings and children as proxies to open the gold shop with a capital of approximately RM600,000.
It is understood that the illegal money was successfully collected by the suspects in their forties to arrange the entry of foreigners without complete documents into this country.
The couple was detained by the MACC through Operation Dygo and remanded at the Ayer Keroh Magistrate's Court, Melaka, for five days from September 10 until tomorrow.
MACC Deputy Chief Commissioner (Operations), Datuk Sri Ahmad Khusairi Yahaya said the suspects were involved in the amnesty programme that allowed employers to obtain legal work permits for undocumented foreign workers.
According to him, the bribes were received in cash and distributed to other officers who managed the files and the suspects received RM150 for each foreigner.
He said that in a period of four years starting in 2020, the suspects are believed to have collect about RM900,000 which was used to open a jewellery shop and the rest to buy a luxury car.
Meanwhile, he said, during a raid on the jewelry shop in Pahang, the suspects were found to have gold reserves estimated to weigh three kilograms with a current value of about RM1.4 million.
The case is currently being investigated under Section 16(a)(B) of the MACC Act 2009. – September 13, 2025
