KOTA KINABALU: A self-employed man pleaded not guilty at the Special Corruption Court here for offering a RM650 bribe to a police officer.
Ghani Ahmad, 39, pleaded not guilty before Sessions Court judge Jason Juga.
Ghani allegedly offered the bribe to the police officer with the ranks of assistant superintendent attached to the Traffic Enforcement and Investigation Department as an inducement not to take action against Ghani for driving without a driving license and to release an undocumented man.
The bribe was allegedly offered at Yayasan Sabah roundabout at 7.45pm on June 19, 2022.
The offence falls under Section 17(b) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act 2009, which is punishable under Section 24 (1) of the same Act.
The punishment provides a jail term of up to 20 years and a fine of RM10,000 or not less than five times the bribe amount upon conviction.
The court fixed April 19 for case management and granted bail at RM10,000, with RM2,000 to be deposited in a local surety.
The court further ordered Ghani to surrender his passport to the court and for him to report to the MACC office twice a month, and not to harass any prosecution witnesses pending disposal of the case.
MACC prosecuting officer Norsham Saharom appeared for the prosecution while the accused was unrepresented.