The Malaysian Insight

POLICE contact with the underworld does not mean that officers are in cahoots with them, Inspector-General of Police Khalid Abu Bakar said, defending his men from claims by whistle-blower website Sarawak Report.

The UK-based site produced a list of phone records between a senior cop and a suspect arrested by the Malaysia Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) in Malacca in a probe into a protection racket.

The senior officer is in the anti-vice and gaming department of the federal police headquarters. Both he and the suspect had been in contact 36 times in two months.

Khalid has previously refused to respond to Sarawak Report’s allegation when it was first published. He said the website had ill-intention and was trying to trigger suspicion against the police.

Today, he gave examples of the many types of calls he dealt with daily.

“Look. For example, every morning I get hundreds of calls and messages from many people just to wish me good morning and wishing me well. Is that something suspicious?” Khalid said.

On MACC’s probe into the Malacca protection racket which saw the arrest of senior police officers in the state, Khalid said he was ready to give his statement to the anti-graft body if required.

He previously admitted that he knew a suspect named “Gopi” and that the person also knew his family members.

MACC chief Dzulkifli Ahmad said last month the investigating team would call Khalid if necessary.

In mid-May, MACC arrested a few individuals, including the Melaka Tengah and Jasin district police chiefs, for their alleged involvement in a syndicate which protected illegal massage parlours and gambling dens in Malacca.

The team also arrested senior police officers from the state police headquarters and few civilians, including “Gopi”.

The team also seized more than RM1 million from the suspects’ account and homes. – July 6, 2017.