JOHOR BAHRU: A scrap collector pleaded not guilty in the Sessions Court here today to a charge of bribing an Iskandar Puteri City Council (MBIP) assistant enforcement officer with RM500 in cash last June.
The accused, Lee Swee Huat (pix), 55, made the plea after the charges were read out before Judge Datuk Ahmad Kamal Arifin Ismail.
Lee allegedly committed the offense at Swee Huat Enterprise in Johor Bahru, offering Abu Hassan Othman a bribe to avoid legal action under Section 46 of the Street, Drainage and Building Act 1974, for placing used goods in public without MBIP’s authorisation.
He was charged under Section 17(b) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission Act 2009, which carries a penalty of imprisonment not exceeding 20 years and a fine of not less than five times the value of the bribe, or RM10,000, whichever is higher upon conviction.
MACC deputy public prosecutor Nur Zahida Muhammad Rozi and prosecuting officer Rais Adha Ramli appeared for MACC, while the accused was represented by lawyer Mohamad Azrulsani Othman.
The court set bail at RM5,000 with one surety, and ordered the accused to surrender his passport and report monthly to the Johor Bahru MACC office until the case is concluded.
The next hearing was scheduled for May 5 to facilitate the submission of documents by both parties. -Bernama
