Former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak's lawyer Muhammad Shafee Abdullah has a diplomatic passport courtesy of Wisma Putra, the Immigration Department said today.

Immigration director-general Mustafar Ali was reported as saying that the Foreign Ministry was responsible for the issue of the passport, which the Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court yesterday ordered Shafee to surrender.

“The diplomatic passport was administered by Wisma Putra (the Foreign Affairs Ministry). The Immigration Department only issues the passport after approval is given to any person,” Mustafar was reported as saying today when asked about the matter at a function at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM).

Shafee was quoted by The Star yesterday as saying the diplomatic passport was given to him when, in 2016, the government appointed him ambassador-at-large for human rights for a term of two years until 2018.

He said the passport is still valid, although he received a letter from Wisma Putra last month informing him he can no longer use it as he no longer holds the position.

Shafee was arrested by the MACC at the Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport in Subang yesterday morning, from where he was to fly to Penang.

He was brought to court and faced four charges under Section 4(1)(a) of the Anti-Money Laundering and Anti-Terrorism Financing Act 2001 (Amla), involving the RM9.5 million he had received from Najib.

Shafee was freed on a bail of RM1million and ordered to surrender both his passports.