ALOR SETAR: Four Customs officers were each sentenced to 24 months’ jail by the Sessions Court here after being found guilty of accepting a bribe of RM22,000 in May 2019.

       Judge Harmi Thamri Mohamad passed the sentence on Kamaruzaman Hashim, 43, Mohamad Fadzil Voon Fandi Voon, 37, Saiful Azhar Ismail, 37, and Muhamad Izrul Ismail, 32, after the defence failed to prove the prosecution’s case beyond reasonable doubt.

       The four were accused of jointly accepting RM22,000 from Md Radzi Puteh who was found to be in possession of contraband cigarettes and firecrackers in Kampung Namek Tua, Sik, at about 6.30pm on May 21, 2019.

       They were charged under Section 137(1)(b) of the Customs Act and the offence punishable under Section 137(1) of the same Act.

       Based on the facts of the case, the first accused, Kamaruzaman, had supposedly discussed with the informant in which he agreed on the payment rate of RM25,000 by releasing the remanded Md Radzi during the raid.

       Then Md Radzi handed over the money contained in a plastic bag to Kamaruzaman while the balance of RM3,000 was given by his (Md Radzi) son-in-law Amir Fadzli Basirun through an online transaction to the first accused, Bernama reported.

       Kamaruzaman was also found guilty of committing the first offence by receiving the RM3,000 at 6.49pm on the same day, hence he was also sentenced to 24 months’ jail, with the sentences to run concurrently.

       However, the court allowed stay of the sentence on all the accused while waiting for the appeal process at the High Court.

       The court allowed the stay of the sentence with the existing bail (RM2,000) be increased to RM10,000 each for the accused.