Senior Immigration Officer Pleads Not Guilty To Over RM900,000 Money Laundering Charges

SHAH ALAM, July 22 (Bernama) -- A Johor Immigration Department senior officer pleaded not guilty in the Sessions Court here today to five charges of involvement in money laundering activities totalling RM933,295 between 2022 and 2024.

Nas Suffian Nasrun, 41, entered the plea before Judge Datuk Mohd Nasir Nordin after the charges were read to him separately.

According to the first charge, Nas Suffian is accused of directly engaging in money laundering transactions involving RM224,840, transferred from a man’s account to his mother’s bank account through 29 online transactions between Nov 1, 2023 and May 29, 2024.

He is also accused of receiving RM297,600 in proceeds from unlawful activities, transferred from the same individual’s bank account to his personal account through 29 transactions between Oct 19, 2022 and Aug 8, 2024.

The man is also charged with transferring RM113,375 from his account to an account of another individual in 32 transactions between April 16, 2023 and Nov 2, 2023.

The accused is also charged with transferring RM209,080 from the bank account of a company he operates to his personal account through 55 online transactions between July 29, 2022 and July 1, 2024.

Under the fifth charge, he is accused of transferring RM88,400 from his mother’s account to his own through 17 transactions between Nov 5, 2023 and Sept 23, 2024. All five offences are alleged to have been committed at two bank branches in Kota Damansara and Kajang.

The first charge is framed under Section 4(1)(a) of the Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act 2001 (Act 613) and the remaining charges under Section 4(1)(b) of the same Act.

The accused is facing a maximum 15-year prison term and a fine of not less than five times the amount of the laundered money, the value of the proceeds from unlawful activities at the time the offence was committed, or RM5 million, whichever is higher.

Deputy Public Prosecutor of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), Siti Amirah Muhammad Ali, proposed bail at RM800,000 with additional conditions imposed. However, defence lawyer Muhammad Zaim Rosli requested a lower amount, citing that his client has to support five school-going children.

The court then set bail at RM100,000 for all charges, with conditions, requiring the accused to report monthly to the MACC, surrender his passport and refrain from interfering with prosecution witnesses. The case has been fixed for mention on Sept 12.

-- BERNAMA