Malaysian reporter acclaimed for migrant syndicate stories denies bribe-taking

B. Nantha Kumar, 42, a senior reporter at prominent local online outlet Malaysiakini, was arrested on February 28 at a hotel in Shah Alam by officers from the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) on suspicion of soliciting and accepting a 20,000 ringgit (US$4,500) bribe from alleged traffickers in return for taking down stories related to their operation.

On Friday, he pleaded not guilty at the High Court in Shah Alam to accepting a bribe under the MACC Act 2019.

In a long rebuttal published by Malaysiakini, he previously accused officials of entrapment saying he “never contacted these agents to ask for a bribe. It was these agents who repeatedly offered to bribe me”.

Yet if convicted, he faces a 20-year prison term and fines not less than five times the amount of the bribe.