Sources said the arrest was made following a complaint by the 38-year-old illegal gambling business owner, who claimed he had received a call from a man asking for RM25,000 in “protection” money on Monday.
Sources said the suspect, a Datuk, had allegedly threatened to expose on his Facebook, or to the media or the police, the complainant’s illegal business dealings, if he failed to pay the protection money.
The complainant went to the police, who then laid the “trap” for the suspect.
The complainant also reportedly had audio recordings of the Datuk allegedly threatening him to “play ball” or risk having his activities exposed.
The collection point for the “protection” money was fixed at 10.45pm at the Nilai toll plaza in Negeri Sembilan, last night. The complainant had allegedly placed the bag containing the money in the rear passenger seat of the Toyota Vellfire the Datuk and his driver were in.
Minutes later, a team of police from the Bukit Aman Criminal Investigation Department moved in to arrest the suspect.
Apart from the RM25,000, police also recovered RM16,000 from the suspect’s vehicle.
The Datuk, who is being probed under Section 384 of the Penal Code for extortion was remanded for two days starting today at the Seremban Court.