Two people held over the Sabah Railway graft probe who were released on bail yesterday were rearrested the same day over a new case involving railway projects worth about RM56 million, according to a source.

The source said they were rearrested between noon and 3pm at the MACC office here after it received a report on the new development, while the 58-year-old deputy director of the Sabah Railway Department and a 39-year-old engineer were in remand since Jan 23.

However, Magistrate Stephanie Sherron Abbie rejected the MACC application for a new remand order on the duo here today, and the officers were released.

The application for the new remand order was made by MACC prosecuting officer Mohd Faliq Basiruddin. The officers were represented by lawyers Sugumar Balakrishnan and Edward Paul.

The officers were among the four people who were released on bail yesterday.

Stephanie extended by two days the remand order for the fifth suspect in the case, a 60-year-old contractor whose five-day remand order expires today.

Two others, who serve as assistant engineers at the department, are on remand for five days beginning yesterday.

To date, the MACC has arrested seven people, five of whom are Railway Department employees while the other two are contractors, to facilitate investigation into suspected graft in the state railway project since 2011.

The MACC also reported that it had seized some RM1.6 million in cash and frozen RM5.3 million in accounts in several banks in connection with the case.

- Bernama