Ex-Pos Malaysia officer charged with accepting RM248,000 as bribes

MELAKA: A former Pos Malaysia Bhd head of planning for transport management appeared before the Ayer Keroh Session's Court here to face 26 charges of accepting bribes totalling RM248,000 as an inducement to expedite the payment process to a logistics company.

Hazri Mokhtar, 43, pleaded not guilty to all the charges which were read out before Judge Elesabet Paya Wan.

According to the charges, Hazri is accused of receiving bribes through online transfers involving two different accounts belonging to him from OnxOn Logistik Sdn Bhd.

The transfers were alleged to have been done via five individuals with payments of between RM5,000 and RM15,000 to the accused, as an inducement to help expediate payment from Pos Malaysia to the company for outsourcing linehaul and shuttle services in Sabah and Sarawak.

The accused is alleged to have committed the offences at Bank Simpanan Nasional, Lot 779 Jalan Munshi Abdullah and at Maybank Melaka Main branch at Graha Peladang, Jalan Hang Tuah here between July 8, 2020 and Oct 11, 2021.

Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) deputy public prosecutor Irwanshah Abdul Samat proposed a bail of RM50,000 with one surety and an additional condition that the accused surrender his passport to the court and report to the Melaka MACC office once a month throughout the course of the case.

Lawyer Mohammad Amir Aizat Abd Rani, who appeared for the defence, appealed for the bail to be reduced on the grounds that the accused now works in the village with an income of about RM800 a month, has to support three school-going children, and has cooperated with the MACC throughout the investigation.

The court set bail at RM35,000 with one surety along with the additional conditions proposed by the prosecution and set Nov 2, for case remention.

-- BERNAMA