Fugitive Businessman Nicky Liow Surrenders To Cops After 1 Year Of Avoiding Capture
The man, who is said to have 34 policemen under his payroll and ties with a convicted Chinese triad boss, has pleaded not guilty to all 26 corruption charges today, 12 April.
By Yap Wan Xiang — 12 Apr 2022, 11:31 AM
Fugitive businessman Nicky Liow Soon Hee, the alleged leader of 'Nicky gang' who also has ties with a transnational organised crime leader, has surrendered to the police following a year-long hunt
Liow, also known as 'Datuk Seri' Nicky Liow, gave himself up to the police at the Bukit Aman Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) office on Jalan Tun Razak, Kuala Lumpur at about 11am yesterday, 11 April, reported Bernama.
It is not reported what the motivation behind Liow's surrender was.
Deputy Inspector-General of Police Datuk Razarudin Husain said, "He will be brought to Shah Alam Court tomorrow (12 April) to face 26 charges."
"On March 23, the Shah Alam Court issued a warrant of arrest against Liow to face charges under Section 4(1)(a) of the Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act 2001."
He was charged in absentia in April last year. The provision deals with offences related to the commission of money laundering or abetting it.
If found guilty, Liow can be slapped with a fine not less than five times the sum of the proceeds that were unlawfully gained or RM5 million ringgit, whichever is higher, a prison term not exceeding 15 years — or both — for each offence.
Free Malaysia Today reported that he pleaded not guilty to all the charges this morning.
In September last year, 14 individuals linked to Liow were given a discharge not amounting to an acquittal (DNAA) as the prosecution intends to pursue the charges in the future
The group was arrested during a police operation to crank down Liow's operation.
Among the 14, five reportedly had 'Datuk' or 'Datuk Seri' titles. Two of them were Liow's younger brothers, Liow Wei Kin and Liow Wei Loon.
Prior to his surrender yesterday, Liow was last seen on 20 March 2021 at SetiaWalk, Puchong, where his syndicate is said to have operated from 48 apartment units there.
Liow, who is the founder of Winner Dynasty Group, came under the police's radar for his various alleged organised crimes
He is said to be the mentee of Zhang Jian, a self-proclaimed 'future richest man in the world'. Zhang was arrested in Indonesia and sent back to China in 2017.
Additionally, he is said to have connections with convicted Chinese triad boss Wan Kuok-koi, also widely known as 'Broken Tooth'.
Wan was responsible for the rise in gang violence in the gambling enclave of Macau in the late 1990s.
At that time, he was the leader of the Macau branch of the Hong Kong-based 14K Triad organised crime group and the founder of the World Hongmen History and Culture Association, for which Liow was appointed vice president in January 2019.
Wan was eventually arrested and spent 14 years in prison until 2012.
In 2020, the 66-year-old former inmate was appointed as an independent non-executive chairman of a public listed company in Malaysia.
He relinquished the position and was later taken up by former Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Tan Sri Mohamad Fuzi Harun.
In March last year, then IGP Tan Sri Abdul Hamid Bador revealed that 34 police officers and enforcement officers were part of the Nicky gang and were on Liow's payroll
It was believed that Liow managed to be always one step ahead of being captured due to tip-offs from inside the police force.
Since then, 10 police officers and two personnel from the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) were detained in connection with the case, reported Malaysiakini.
At the height of the scandal last year, the Pahang palace stripped Liow's Darjah Sri Sultan Ahmad Shah Pahang (SSAP) title, an honourary that comes with a Datuk Seri title.
Over RM10 million worth of valuables — consisting of luxury cars, cash in various currencies, and 41 bank accounts — were seized by the police last year.
Image via Kwong Wah Daily