Counter-setting: Court grants 7-day remand on 3 immigration officers

The Kuantan Magistrate Court today ordered a seven-day remand against three Immigration Department officers who were arrested by MACC in Johor, Negeri Sembilan and Kuala Lumpur yesterday.

According to a statement issued by the Pahang MACC office, the officers - two men and a woman - are suspected of involvement in a syndicate that trafficked migrant workers between 2021 and 2024.

The remand order was issued by Magistrate Nor Izzati Zakaria upon a request from the anti-graft agency.

"MACC suspects these officers, who are stationed at the country's main entry point, have raked in millions of ringgit from the illegal activities. On top of that, they have also (allegedly) distributed bribes to other officers.

"The suspects had (allegedly) allowed foreigners to enter the country without following proper procedures by doing counter settings at KLIA 1 and 2," said the statement.

During the arrests, the MACC also seized an undisclosed amount of cash and jewellery. The suspects' bank accounts are also under investigation.

Pahang MACC director Shukor Mahmud said the case was being investigated under Section 17(a) of the MACC Act.

Malaysiakini has published a series of reports since Aug last year that expose the modus operandi of counter setting syndicates.

ALSO READ: 'Counter setting' syndicate still operating in KLIA – sources

Since the exposé, MACC had launched a series of operations called Op Pump, Op Pump 2.0 and Op Setting that led to the arrests of about 50 immigration officers from across the country.

The issue also became a subject of debate in the Dewan Rakyat last October.

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