Landowner fined RM75,000 for RM15,000 bribe to DOE officer over illegal e-waste site

SHAH ALAM – A landowner's attempt to bribe a Department of Environment (DOE) officer to turn a blind eye to an illegal e-waste premises has cost her RM75,000 in fines imposed by the Sessions Court here today.

Judge Awang Kerisnada Awang Mahmud handed down the sentence on Chan Suit Cheong, 61, who pleaded guilty after an alternative charge was read to her.

According to the charge, she gave RM15,000 in bribe money to a Senior Control Officer of the DOE Putrajaya in return for concealing an offence under Section 18(1) of the Environmental Quality Act 1974 for operating without a licence.

The offence was committed at a site involving three land lots in Telok Panglima Garang, Johan Setia, Klang, on Feb 25 last year.

The charge was framed under Section 214 of the Penal Code, which carries a jail term of up to 10 years or a fine, or both.

Piles of e-waste found

Based on the facts of the case, a DOE inspection at a land lot rented out by Chan to a Chinese national led to the discovery of piles of e-waste, including used printing machines and dismantled printed circuit boards.

When she failed to produce valid operating documents, the accused took out a package containing RM15,000 in cash and placed it on the table as an inducement for the DOE officer not to act against her company.

Deputy public prosecutor Muhammad Arif Asyraf Mohd Khairi handled the prosecution, while the accused was represented by lawyer S. Preakas.