Five Felda officials remanded in RM47.6mil sturgeon project probe

The Felda officials in lock-up uniform being led into the magistrate's court in Putrajaya

PUTRAJAYA: Five current and former Felda officials have been remanded as part of investigations into alleged corruption and power abuse.

Magistrate Nik Isfahanie Tasnim Wan Ab Rahman on Wednesday allowed the five to be remanded for a week under Section 18 of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act.

The five were brought to the magistrate's court by MACC officers at 9am, clad in the "Lokap SPRM" t-shirt.

The five are Felda's former director-general, ex-deputy director-general (strategic resources), the former operations officer in charge of its sturgeon farming project in Taman Negara, the current head of its London Properties and an assistant administration officer.

Felda is the latest government-linked company (GLC) to be investigated by the MACC. The officers were believed to have committed corruption over a sturgeon-farming project worth RM47.6mil.

They were picked up in a sting operation, dubbed Ops Caviar, between 11.30am and 6pm in several locations around Klang Valley on Tuesday.

Valuable items, including a luxury car and jewellery estimated to be worth millions, were seized during the raids.

More items are expected to be seized as anti-graft officers visit their homes and obtain details of their assets. The personal accounts of their immediate family members are to be frozen as part of investigations.

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