Town planning officer claims trial to RM19,100 false claims charge

KOTA KINABALU: A town planning officer has claimed trial at the Special Corruption Court here on Wednesday (June 11) to a charge of submitting a false claim amounting to RM19,100.

Nazri Hamburg, 46, an officer with the Sabah Town and Country Planning Department, pleaded not guilty when the charge under Section 18 of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act 2009 was read before Judge Jason Juga.

According to the charge, Nazri is accused of knowingly submitting a false document, a claim form dated June 12, 2017, to a finance administrative assistant in his department.

The claim allegedly included a bill, No. 171021 dated May 12, 2017, for the delivery of a car and a pick-up truck, along with a labour charge for moving goods, totalling RM19,100.

Investigators claimed that no such transportation or services were rendered.

If convicted, Nazri faces a maximum of 20 years in prison and a fine of not less than five times the value of the false claim or RM10,000, whichever is higher, under Section 24(2) of the same Act.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Dzulkarnain Rousan Hasbi prosecuted, while Nazri was represented by Hannan Razaini of Messrs M.S. Shah & Associates.

The court allowed bail at RM10,000 with one surety.

Nazri was also ordered to report to the MACC office every two months pending the outcome of the case.

Mention has been fixed for July 10, 2025.