TAWAU: Five men and a woman have been remanded for three days from today for allegedly making false declarations on the sale of gold that was mined by two companies in Bukit Mantri here.
The remand order was issued by magistrate Leona Dominic Mojiliu.
The suspects, aged between 42 and 67, including a man with a “Datuk” title, were arrested at the MACC office late last night for investigation under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating.
It is understood that the suspects, which included the CEO and director of a company, had allegedly tried to deceive the Sabah government by providing statements on the sale of the gold with false details.
They had apparently avoided paying royalties to the state government from the mining operations.
It is believed that 100kg of gold worth RM25 million that was mined was not reported by the companies. They should have contributed RM1.25 million in royalty payments to the government from 2020 to 2022.
The two companies are believed to have conspired to commit the crime.