Judge Harmi Thamri Mohamad passed the sentence on Kamaruzaman Hashim, 43, Mohamad Fadzil Voon Fandi Voon, 37, Saiful Azhar Ismail, 37, and Muhamad Izrul Ismail, 32.

The judge said the court took into consideration that public interest outweighed personal interest and the sentence must serve as a lesson for all customs officers and other public servants.

The four were accused of jointly accepting RM22,000 from Md Radzi Puteh, who had been found to be in possession of contraband cigarettes and firecrackers at Kampung Namek Tua, Sik at 6.30pm on May 21, 2019.

The four were charged under Section 137(1)(b) of the Customs Act 1967 and sentenced under Section 137(1) of the same act.

Based on the facts of the case, the first accused Kamaruzaman had supposedly discussed and agreed to a payment of RM25,000 for Radzi’s release during the raid.

Radzi then handed over RM22,000 to Kamaruzaman in a plastic bag, while the balance of RM3,000 was given by his (Radzi’s) son-in-law, Amir Fadzli Basirun, through an online transaction to the first accused.

Kamaruzaman was also found guilty of committing the first offence by receiving the RM3,000 at 6.49pm on the same day. He was sentenced to another 24 months’ jail, with the sentences to run concurrently.

However, the court allowed a stay of the prison sentences for all the accused pending their appeal to the High Court after they applied for a postponement through their counsel, Rosman Azwan Osman.

The court allowed the bail to stay at RM10,000 for each of the accused. They are also required to report themselves to the nearest customs department in the first week of each month.

Deputy public prosecutor from the customs department, Khairul Nizam Abu Bakar, appeared for the prosecution.