MACC chief says Op Sohor smuggling probe unrelated to retirements of top military generals

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 22 — The retirements of two senior armed forces officers are not connected to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission’s (MACC) Op Sohor investigation into a smuggling syndicate, MACC chief commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki said today.

Azam said the investigation is ongoing and charges have already been brought in the case, the New Straits Times reported.

“The Op Sohor investigation has nothing to do with their retirements. We (MACC) also have no information related to their retirements,” he said.

Defence Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin said earlier that the retirements of armed forces chief General Tan Sri Mohd Nizam Jaffar and Malaysian Defence Intelligence Organisation (MDIO) director general Lieutenant General Datuk Mohd Razali Alias were not connected to the investigation.

He made the remarks when asked about a report by a news portal linking the retirement of the two officers to the arrest of 10 individuals, including military personnel, suspected of involvement in smuggling last August.

Khaled confirmed that both officers will retire at the mandatory age of 60 next year.

Nizam will begin his leave on January 1, 2026 before his mandatory retirement in August, while Razali will retire in December 2026.

In earlier reports, MACC arrested five MDIO military intelligence officers, disrupting a smuggling syndicate said to be led by a senior armed forces officer in the south.

In total, 10 people were remanded under Op Sohor, including the military personnel, two journalists and a foreign woman.