PETALING JAYA: The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) has filed an appeal to reverse a High Court judgment that it cannot rely on the Criminal Procedure Code (CPC) to remand suspects for investigation purposes.
A check by FMT with the Court of Appeal registry revealed the notice of appeal was filed on May 15, accompanied by a certificate of urgency.
A case management is scheduled to be held online tomorrow before deputy registrar Khairy Haron.
Six policemen, including an inspector, have been named as respondents.
In a judgment dated May 11, Judicial Commissioner Roslan Mat Nor, who sits in the Temerloh High Court, said Section 49 of the MACC Act 2009 gives the commission specific powers which it must use when carrying out investigations.
Exercising his revisionary power, Roslan set aside remand orders issued against the six policemen under Section 117 of the CPC for allegedly soliciting and accepting bribes amounting to RM5,000.
In his 43-page judgment, Roslan said Section 49, when read in its entirety, only permits an arrest to be made at the tail-end of an investigation.
He said while the MACC Act allows a person to be arrested, the suspect must be freed on bail or bond if investigations were incomplete.
However, he can be rearrested without a warrant if bail conditions are breached, Roslan added.
He said MACC may detain the person for up to 24 hours and must seek a remand order under Section 49(4) of the MACC Act for a longer detention period.
In normal criminal investigations, an investigating authority would apply to a magistrate under Section 117 of the CPC to extend a suspect’s remand for seven to 14 days.