A Melaka Immigration Department officer has pleaded not guilty in the Sessions Court to seven charges of accepting bribes amounting to RM1,950 in connection with protecting an undocumented migrant.
The accused, 39-year-old Mohd Nazrul Md Yasin, entered the plea after all seven charges were read before Sessions Court Judge Mohamad Kamil Nizam on Monday.
According to the charges, Mohd Nazrul allegedly accepted cash bribes ranging from RM150 to RM300 from a 69-year-old man on seven separate occasions between 1 January and 10 July 2025.
The payments were allegedly made as an inducement for the immigration officer to refrain from taking legal action against the elderly man’s 23-year-old daughter, who was accused of harbouring a foreign worker without valid identification documents, an offence under the Immigration Act 1959/63.
The alleged offences were said to have taken place at a restaurant in Merlimau, Jasin, Melaka.
The charges were framed under Section 16(a)(B) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act 2009 and are punishable under Section 24(1) of the same Act.
If convicted, Mohd Nazrul faces a maximum prison sentence of 20 years and a fine of at least five times the value of the bribe or RM10,000, whichever is higher, for each charge.
During the proceedings, MACC deputy public prosecutor Sharina Farhana Nor Sa’ari argued that the offences were serious and generally non-bailable. However, if bail was to be granted, the prosecution proposed bail of RM20,000 for all charges with one local surety.
The prosecution also requested additional conditions, including the surrender of the accused’s international passport, a requirement to report to the MACC office once a month and an order prohibiting him from contacting prosecution witnesses until the case is concluded.
Mohd Nazrul, who was unrepresented, appealed for a lower bail amount, telling the court that he could only afford RM5,000, which he had borrowed. He also informed the court that he had been suspended from duty and is the sole breadwinner supporting his mother and four school-going children.
After hearing submissions from both sides, the court granted bail at RM12,000 with one local surety and imposed the additional conditions requested by the prosecution.
The court fixed 26 August for the next mention of the case.
