Ops Samba: 23 Customs Officers and Personnel to be Charged
PUTRAJAYA: A total of 23 customs officers and personnel will be charged under Section 17(a) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act 2009 and Section 165 of the Penal Code in six sessions of courts nationwide by June 6.
The MACC announced today that so far, two customs officers have been charged in court after being detained through Ops Samba 2.0.
According to the statement, the operation, conducted from March 11 to March 25, focused on investigating members and officers of the Royal Malaysian Customs Department working in the cargo section at Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA), ultimately detecting tax revenue leakage amounting to RM2 billion.
“This represents a significant loss of national revenue and will have a continuous negative impact on the country’s economy if not curbed,” stated the MACC.
In the operation, the MACC detained 34 officers and personnel ranging from grades 19 to 44, along with 27 individuals and company owners. The investigation found they colluded with syndicates involved in the smuggling, importation, and sale of illicit alcohol and cigarettes.
The MACC’s Anti-Money Laundering (AML) division also seized mobile phones, laptops, and eight luxury vehicles belonging to the syndicate.
The MACC has also frozen 231 bank accounts belonging to individuals, companies, and ‘mule accounts’ linked to the smuggling syndicate, involving approximately RM18 million.
Ops Samba 2.0 is an operation led by the MACC in collaboration with the Inland Revenue Board (LHDN) and Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) to combat corrupt activities of enforcement agency officers protecting smuggling activities since 2017.
The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) detected the syndicate dismantled in the recent Ops Samba using the modus operandi of ‘forwarding agents’ acting as intermediaries to pay bribes to enforcement officers.
According to sources, customs officers working in the cargo inspection at Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) were bribed to facilitate smuggling processes without the necessary declarations and inspections.
The source claimed that the syndicate had been involved in smuggling and bribing enforcement agency officers from 2017 to 2024. “Investigations revealed that the officers received approximately RM4.7 million in bribes from the syndicate through ‘mule accounts’ to avoid detection of these financial transactions,” the source alleged.
The source added that the syndicate was also involved in money laundering activities by cleaning the money through ‘ghost company’ business accounts, money changers, online gambling activities, and licensed money lending companies.
It was found that 19 ‘ghost companies’ were established to conduct various business activities for money laundering to evade detection by authorities.
Meanwhile, seven other officers and personnel have been recommended for disciplinary action by the relevant agency, according to the source.
The charges are being processed throughout May and up until June 6.
On March 29, the MACC revealed that the revenue leakage caused by smuggling syndicates involving several members of the Royal Malaysian Customs Department at KLIA, Sepang, reached RM2 billion over the past three years.
MACC Chief Commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki stated that, so far, 34 enforcement officers and 27 individuals and company owners have been detained through Ops Samba 2.0 for protecting and facilitating the syndicate’s smuggling activities.
Ops Samba 2.0 is an operation led by the MACC in collaboration with the Inland Revenue Board (LHDN) and Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) to combat corrupt activities of enforcement agency officers protecting smuggling activities since 2017.
