KOTA KINABALU: A senior state department official and an executive director of a gold mining company pleaded not guilty at the Special Corruption Court here to a total of RM18,000 in bribery between April 2024 and October 2025.
The two accused – Robert Robin Millip, the principal assistant director of Sabah Lands and Surveys Department’s minerals division (contract), and Chong Tzu Khen, the executive director of Wullersdorf Resources Sdn Bhd – entered their pleas before Judge Andi Razalijaya A. Dadi.
Both accused, aged 60, face three charges related to the alleged giving and receiving of bribes.
Chong and Robert were granted RM8,000 bail each with local sureties, with the court fixing Oct 27 for case management.
The court also ordered both of them to surrender their international and restricted passports, and report to the nearest Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission office once a month.
They are also to refrain from contacting prosecution witnesses.
Chong was charged for giving a bribe under Section 17(b) of the MACC Act 2009, while Robert was charged for receiving under Section 17(a) of the same Act.
According to the charge sheets, Chong corruptly gave Robert a cash loan of RM10,000 at a restaurant in Taman Fortuna, Kota Kinabalu, in April 2024.
For the second charge, he is accused of corruptly giving Robert a cash loan of RM3,000 at a coffee shop in Kota Kinabalu in October 2024.
The third charge involves the alleged payment of a RM5,000 cash loan to Robert in October 2025.
The alleged bribes were purportedly intended to facilitate the operations of a gold mining venture managed by the accused company.
Meanwhile, for Robert’s first charge, he was accused of corruptly obtaining a RM10,000 cash loan from Chong as an inducement for facilitating the mining operations of Wullersdorf Resources Sdn Bhd.
For the second and third charges, Robert is accused of receiving RM3,000 and RM5,000 respectively from Chong for the same purpose in October 2024 and October 2025.
