Umno must return money from 1MDB – Mahathir

KUALA LUMPUR: Umno must return to the government any money they received from 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), said Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

This comes as 900 bank accounts, including those belonging to Umno were frozen by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Friday for their alleged link to the scandal-ridden 1MDB.

“We need to know where the money comes from and if it is from 1MDB, it has to be returned,” Malaysiakini reported Dr Mahathir as saying.

Earlier, Najib, who is at the centre of the controversy, had suggested that only individual accounts be frozen instead.

He also stressed that unfreezing Umno’s account would not interfere with ongoing investigations into 1MDB.

The Edge yesterday reported that Barisan Nasional parties received up to RM300 million from 1MDB that was believed to have originated from proceeds of 1MDB’s bond issues in 2012 and 2013.

In a report by The Edge, sources were quoted as saying among those that received the fund was Umno headquarters thats got nearly RM145 million from one of former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s AmBank account.

The New Straits Times also reported that the freezing of Umno bank accounts could be linked to an alleged transfer of some RM600 million from 1MDB into its accounts.