KUALA LUMPUR: A politician from an opposition party was caught red-handed by Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) officers for soliciting a bribe during an operation in Selangor yesterday.
The 32-year-old man, said to be a prominent figure from the political party's Gombak branch, was caught after he accepted a RM4,000 bribe from a private company's representative.
A source told the New Straits Times that the operation was carried out after MACC received a report that the politician, who is also the general manager of another company, had sought a bribe to extend a contract.
"The suspect had allegedly requested a sum of money from the company if they wanted to extend a contract, which had expired recently, between the two companies.
"After receiving the report, a team of MACC officers and the company's representative planned a sting operation. The suspect was arrested after a meeting at an eatery in AU5 Hulu Klang at 5pm yesterday."
It was learnt that the suspect was taken into custody by Selangor MACC, which conducted the operation.
Selangor MACC director Datuk Jaafar Mahad confirmed the arrest when contacted yesterday. However, he declined to comment about whether the bribe was solicited to finance the suspect's political campaign as investigations were ongoing.
PKR Youth chief Shamsul Iskandar Akin said he knew the suspect but was unaware of his arrest.