DoE chief charged over RM100,000 bribe in Penang road project

DoE chief charged over RM100,000 bribe in Penang road project



Environment Department director-general Datuk Wan Abdul Latiff Wan Jaffar is brought to the Sessions Court in Kuala Lumpur on April 2, 2026. — Bernama pic

Friday, 03 Apr 2026 10:44 AM MYT


KUALA LUMPUR, April 2 — The director-general of the Environment Department, Datuk Wan Abdul Latiff Wan Jaffar, was charged at the Sessions Court here today with accepting a RM100,000 bribe in connection with an appeal to bypass an environmental impact assessment (EIA) for a major road project in Penang.

Wan Abdul Latiff, 58, entered a plea of not guilty after the charge was read out to him before Judge Suzana Hussin, Free Malaysia Today reported.

According to the charge sheet, he is accused of receiving the bribe from Datuk Khor Chong Hai, a director of Sunrich Conquest Sdn Bhd, through the company’s project manager, Lee Ham Kong.

The alleged offence took place at the director-general’s office in Putrajaya on January 15, 2025.


The payment was allegedly an inducement for him to approve an appeal for an EIA exemption for the proposed Bukit Kukus paired road project in Paya Terubong, Penang.


The application for the exemption was submitted by another company, Geo Valley Sdn Bhd, in November 2024.

The charge is framed under Section 16(a)(B) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act 2009.


If convicted, he faces a maximum prison sentence of 20 years and a fine of not less than five times the bribe amount or RM10,000, whichever is higher.