MACC: We have a knack for unearthing ill-gotten gains

JOHOR BARU: Malaysian AntiCorruption Commission (MACC) investigators have developed a knack for sniffing out ill-gotten gains no matter how well they are hidden.

State MACC director Datuk Azmi Alias said this was proven in many high-profile cases where money and luxury items were found stashed in secret compartments or hiding places.

“We found items hidden in ceilings, secret chambers and specially-built cabinets.

“You name it, we found it,” he said in his speech at the Iskandar Regional Development Authority (IRDA) Corruption-Free Pledge yesterday.

The taking of the pledge was led by IRDA chief executive officer Datuk Ismail Ibrahim, followed by its senior management team involving some 200 employees.

Azmi commended the expertise of his officers in unearthing the wealth of the corrupt, adding that no culprit would slip under MACC’s radar.

The officers would even monitor the lifestyle of anyone suspected of corruption to see if they were living the high life and then look into how they acquired the wealth.

“It is obvious if a salaried person’s lifestyle or wealth does not match their monthly income, there must be something wrong somewhere,” he said.

Sometimes the money would be stashed in bank accounts opened under family members’ names, or those of trusted friends and “proxies”, he added.

“Normally, a husband will not keep the money in his wife’s account but will keep it in his girlfriend’s,” Azmi said, quipping that the husband trusted his girlfriend more than his own wife.

Ismail said the pledge reaffirmed IRDA’s commitment in ensuring that the organisation remained transparent and free from corruption.

He said it was timely for the organisation to show that its employees upheld good practices and values.

You name it, we found it.

Datuk Azmi Alias