THREE Shah Alam City Council (MBSA) enforcement officers have been arrested by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) on suspicion of receiving monthly bribes to protect illegal gambling businesses in Sungai Buloh, Selangor.

The MACC action comes after Hot Burger Malaysia founder Asri Abdul Hamid Asri shared a video recording of illicit gambling dens and other illegal operations in the area, which has also led to the arrest of an Indonesian man for cigarette smuggling.

Asri alleged the dens operated under police protection and no action had been taken against the owners.

MACC deputy chief commissioner (operations) Ahmad Khusairi Yahaya confirmed the arrests when contacted by The Malaysian Insight.

He did not rule out the existence of a syndicate of law enforcement officers taking bribes.

“I urge any party with information on corrupt activities among law enforcement to come forward.

“Your identity will be fully protected,” he said.

Khusairi said the case was being investigated under Section 17(a) of the MACC Act 2009 for soliciting or accepting bribes.

Sources told The Malaysian Insight that the three enforcement officers were detained at the MACC headquarters in Putrajaya when called to give their statements at 9am this morning.

“The arrest follows revelations in a video clip, alleging the authorities failed to monitor and enforce the law, aside from receiving bribes from cigarette smugglers and gambling dens around Sungai Buloh,” said sources.

Two of the officers worked at the MBSA Sungai Buloh branch office, while the third worked at the state’s Shah Alam headquarters.

“All of them will be remanded tomorrow,” one of the sources said.

The viral video caught the attention of Inspector-General of Police Abdul Hamid Bador and Home Minister Hamzah Zainudin, who held separate meetings yesterday with Asri.

Yesterday, Hamid had posted a picture of the meeting with Asri at his office in Bukit Aman, while thanking the entrepreneur for making time to meet him.

“Thank you Asri, Hot Burger Malaysia founder, for coming to my office,” said Hamid in a short Facebook post.

However, Hamid did not disclose what was discussed during their meeting.

Contraband cigarettes

Sources added that an Indonesian who smuggled cigarettes from Aceh, as seen in the video, was also detained for investigation.

“The man, who has been doing business in the area since last year, was arrested at his house in Sungai Buloh last night and will be handed over to the Immigration Department for further action.

“He is believed to have paid a bribe of RM300 a month to the enforcement officers to avoid any action,” sources said.

The MACC believes that the enforcement officers involved had received bribes of between RM300 to RM3,500 per month from each business, included gambling dens, unlicensed eateries, cigarette stalls, and stalls running businesses in restricted areas, he said.

Sources also said that some of the officers had leaked information regarding enforcement operations planned by the authorities.

“This had caused the operations to fail, because they were already known to these illegal traders,” he said. – August 11, 2020.