MACC detains five for allegedly falsifying claims

KUCHING: The Malaysian AntiCorruption Commission (MACC) Sarawak yesterday detained five individuals, including two assistant directors of National Civics Bureau for allegedly falsifying claims to the tune of about RM600,000.

All the suspects - three men and two women aged between 34 and 55 - were arrested around 4.30pm at the state MACC premises here after their statements had been taken.

Three of them are retirees who have served in the bureau in Sarawak.

The five are suspected to have collaborated with 43 companies from all over Sarawak by falsifying claims for several works worth RM2,000 to RM6,000 each, according to a source close to the probe yesterday.

The payments were allegedly made to accounts of the companies in 2016 and the five individuals were suspected to have benefitted from the ill-gotten gains.

According to the state MACC, around 70 per cent of services and supplies purportedly done by the companies were either nonexistent or not done during the specified period.

The five were suspected to have control over the account of the bureau and they allegedly used the monies in it for personal gain.

State MACC director Razim Mohd Noor, when contacted, confirmed that there was such a case and his officers were in the midst of gathering relevant documents to justify their case.

He said the suspects would be held on remand to facilitate further investigation into the allegation.