KOTA KINABALU: Two civil servants have been arrested for allegedly accepting bribes of about RM130,000 from contractors in return for upgrading and minor maintenance work on school toilets in a district. The two men in their 50s were detained when they came to the Sabah headquarters of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) here between 7pm and 10pm on Thursday (Nov 14), sources said. According to the sources, one suspect has been remanded until Nov 21 while the other was released on MACC bail after his statement was recorded.
Initial investigations indicated the suspects had demanded bribes amounting to 30% of each project's value. "It worked out to about RM130,000 in total they allegedly took from several contractors. "Both are suspected of receiving bribe money in cash (in several instalments)," the source added.
According to another source, the MACC also confiscated approximately RM90,000 in cash and seized two luxury vehicles. Sabah MACC director Datuk S. Karunanithy confirmed the arrest when contacted.
He said the case was being investigated under Section 17(a) of the MACC Act 2009 and did not rule out the possibility of follow-up arrests in the ongoing investigation. He also called on any contractor who has ever given a bribe to any civil servant for any project to come forward and provide information to the MACC..