Malay reserve land fraud: MACC to call up more witnesses

The investigation into the fraud involving more than 600ha of Malay reserve land in Perak is underway and more witnesses will be called up, said MACC chief commissioner Azam Baki.

He said former Perak executive councillors would also be summoned.

“This is the second stage after a Land and Mines Office officer was charged (in April).

“We are examining the minutes of exco approval meetings, other witnesses, and these exco members. Prosecution will take place soon,” Azam (above) told reporters after attending the finals of the Higher Education Institution Anti-Corruption Debate Competition at Universiti Teknologi Petronas in Seri Iskandar yesterday.

On April 30, a former deputy registrar of titles at the state Land and Mines Office was charged at the Ipoh Sessions Court for altering the status of 649.2ha of Malay reserve land in the Sitiawan subdistrict in Manjung 12 years ago.

Rosli Che Mohamed, 64, was charged with deceiving the Perak Agricultural Land Board and making it believe that the land with property title No PN 174770-174772, No Lot PT 17527-17529 in Sitiawan was not Malay reserve land through a Perak Land and Mines Office data correction form on March 25, 2011.

A property company managing director was remanded for three days concerning the case but was released on May 30.

According to Azam, the remand order against the managing director issued by the Magistrate’s Court expired. However, an investigation is ongoing.

In another development, Azam said MACC is applying to freeze the bank accounts of three suspects in the RM1.183 million marriage registration bribery case in Perlis, who were detained on June 5.

“Among the suspects are the Perlis syariah chief registrar of marriages, and we want to find out what has happened to the money deposited into their accounts, where it has been spent, and so on,” he said.

Three individuals, including a senior officer of the Perlis Islamic Religious Affairs Department and an imam of a mosque in Kangar, are being remanded for five days until June 9 to assist in the investigation.

- Bernama