An officer from the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) was detained for allegedly blackmailing a police officer working in the state.

Seberang Perai Tengah (SPT) district police chief, ACP Nik Ros Azhan Nik Abdul Hamid said the 38-year-old officer attached to the MACC Northern Zone Intelligence Unit in Putrajaya was arrested at a restaurant in Taman Machang Bubok, Bukit Mertajam at 10.20 last night.

“Based on the investigation, the victim who is attached to the gambling and secret society (D7) branch of the SPT district police headquarters had been contacted via the Whatsapp application by the MACC officer in March for a meeting.

“The police officer, who knows the man, had replied that he could not meet him as he was in Putrajaya and since then, the suspect frequently contacted the victim but the police officer refused to meet as he knew the suspect would blackmail him,” Nik Ros Azhan said in Bukit Mertajam today.

He added that on June 5, the victim was informed by his friend that the MACC officer wanted to meet him and fixed a monthly payment of RM3,000 to be paid for purportedly "looking after" the police officer attached to the SPT district police headquarters.

“After the victim met with the MACC officer at a restaurant and handed over the RM3,000 in cash, a team of policemen detained the suspect and seized the money,” he said.

In addition, he said, police also seized his authority card, sling bag, two 9mm bullet shells, a mobile phone and a Volkswagen car from him.

The MACC officer is now remanded for three days beginning today.

Meanwhile, the MACC said in a statement that it would not compromise with any of its officers who had committed any crime and would cooperate with the police and welcomed the stern action taken in detaining the suspect.

- Bernama