SHAH ALAM - Businessman Albert Tei was arrested by officers believed to be from the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) on Friday during a raid at his home in Puchong, Selangor.
The operation, which took place in the morning, was carried out with a warrant.
His lawyer, Zaid Malek, later alleged that officers forcibly entered the residence and took Albert away in handcuffs.
“No officers had identified themselves. The failure to identify themselves is high-handed and unlawful. They only spoke to me after I took pictures of the incident, illegally asking to take my phone and see the photos I took.
"Subsequently they brought Albert out handcuffed. He was surrounded by balaclava clad armed officers. It was as if they were arresting a terrorist,” he said in a statement.
Zaid claimed that he was prevented from meeting his client when he arrived at the scene and said the officers did not immediately identify themselves or state where Albert was being taken, adding that it was unappropriate for them to be asking to check his mobile phone aswell.
“The actions of the authorities here is a breach of my client's constitutional rights to due process.
“His right to counsel is also denied. It is shocking that a whistleblower or corruption informant is being arrested. No such action has been taken against the person he informed against,” he said.
At this point, MACC has not issued a detailed statement in response to these allegations.
Few hours later, Albert was brought back to his home under escort. His lawyer confirmed the development, saying he was informed about it while on the way to meet Albert.
However, Zaid said had yet any confirmed information on whether Albert was being returned home or whether the authorities were conducting additional checks at the residence.
There had been no official confirmation from MACC regarding the purpose of returning Albert to the house.
The arrest followed public attention on Albert’s earlier allegations involving Datuk Seri Shamsul Iskandar Md Akin, the former Senior Political Secretary to the Prime Minister.
Albert had claimed he paid RM629,000 to Shamsul in relation to efforts to recover money he said had been channelled to political figures in Sabah.
He also compiled a document of over 300 pages, containing WhatsApp screenshots and receipts, to support his claim.
Following the allegations, Shamsul resigned from his position, saying he was the target of attempts to damage the government’s image.
Another lawyer representing Albert, Mahajoth Singh, described Friday’s raid as unnecessary because Albert had already been scheduled to give his statement to MACC this Monday. He expressed concerns over the timing of the arrest and the manner in which the operation was conducted.
MACC had earlier confirmed that a warrant was used during the operation, but as of now, the commission, including its Chief Commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki has not released further details about the sequence of events, the reasons for the arrest, or the decision to bring Albert back to his residence.