PUTRAJAYA - A court ordered 12 people remanded over the alleged manipulation of Malaysia’s MyIMMs system to approve foreign-worker passes outside required procedures.
Magistrate Ezrene Zakariah issued the remand orders at the Putrajaya Magistrate’s Court on July 29 after granting an application by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission. Five male suspects were remanded for three days, while five other men and two women were remanded for two days.
The suspects comprise four Immigration officers, two officers from the department’s Information Technology Division, two company directors, three foreign nationals and a police officer. All are in their 30s or 40s. They were arrested separately between 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. on July 28 at the MACC headquarters and the Penang Immigration office.
MACC Chief Commissioner Datuk Seri Abd Halim Aman said preliminary findings indicated that the alleged syndicate used a foreign-worker quota dating from 2011 without paying the required pass levies.
Investigators identified 1,306 allegedly fraudulent Visitor’s Passes (Temporary Employment), known by the Malay abbreviation PLKS, and estimated the resulting loss to the government at RM2.4 million.
Investigators also allege that payments of between RM1,000 and RM6,000 were made for each PLKS application to Immigration personnel who helped secure approvals without following prescribed procedures.
Under the Immigration Department’s published PLKS process, employers must obtain approval and pay the applicable levy before applying for a Visa With Reference and temporary-employment pass.
The operation followed intelligence sharing between the MACC and Immigration Department since May in the Klang Valley and Penang.
It was supported by CyberSecurity Malaysia, Telekom Malaysia and the MACC Technology Forensics Division, while searches were conducted at company premises and Immigration offices in Penang and Putrajaya.
Authorities reported seizing RM186,360 and S$700 in cash, jewellery valued at RM15,700, and mobile phones, laptops and other electronic equipment estimated to be worth RM36,000. The case is being investigated under Sections 16(a) and 17(a) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission Act 2009.
The seven two-day remand orders were due to expire on July 30, while the five three-day orders were due to expire on July 31.
