MACC personnel escorting the suspects to the court to get their remand order extended. — Bernama photo
KUANTAN: The remand order on five individuals including a Forestry Department officer and his wife who were detained for alleged corruption involving illegal logging in the Jerantut district, has been extended until Wednesday.
Counsel Datuk Ng See Tiong, who represents two of the suspects, said the order was issued by Magistrate Rini Triany Mohamad Ali today following an application from deputy public prosecutor Mohamad Fadhly Mohd Zamri of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).
“The application for remand extension was submitted on the grounds that there are still a lot of documents to be scrutinised.
In addition, there are items which had not been found and the witness(es) involved in the case are not in Pahang,” he told reporters at the Kuantan Courts Complex here.
The other suspects were represented by lawyers Datuk Syed Azimal Amir Syed Abu Bakar, Ibrahim Kamaluddin and Hon Kai Ping.
The suspects, aged between 40 and 50, were picked up at their respective homes and the district forestry department office on Sept 11 to facilitate investigations under Section 17(a) and 16(a)(B) of the MACC Act 2009.
It is learnt that the forestry officer and his staff had allegedly received bribes from the company as an inducement to not take action on illegal logging activities since 2015. — Bernama