KUALA LUMPUR — The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) and Bank Negara have busted a syndicate where banks and external financial consultants colluded over personal loan applications.
MACC in a statement said 12 people including a bank manager were remanded in Putrajaya today for five days, for investigations under Section 16 of the MACC Act 2000.
Those detained are 10 men and two women, between the ages of 20 and 40.
They include a manager and a former sales manager of a banking institution, two directors of a financial consulting company, and a foundation director.
MACC Chief Commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki said the agency’s Anti-Money Laundering Division and the central bank collaborated to investigate how officers at several banking institutions accepted bribes from financial consulting companies in return for processing and approving personal loans for customers with bad debts.
The victims targeted were primarily civil servants deeply in debt.
They were picked by bank officers who were introduced them to a financial consulting firm offering assistance in the form of a “multiple loan scheme”, Azam said in MACC’s statement.
The financial consulting company would then prepare documents containing false information to be submitted to several banks to obtain loans.
The consulting firm would “advance money” to the borrower or victim to pay off their debt, telling them to repay the advance after the bank loan is approved, and to place remaining funds after the “advance” is repaid in an investment scheme.
Azam said MACC and Bank Negara’s “Op Sky” involved raids at 24 locations, including homes and offices around the Klang Valley, on Jan 13, that led to the arrest of the 12 individuals.
MACC has also frozen 70 company and individual accounts involving a value of over RM16.2 million.
Nine vehicles were seized, including marques like the Ferrari F8 Spider, Lexus RC300, Mercedes-Benz GLC43, BMW, Toyota Alphard, Mazda and Honda.
“MACC also seized more than RM300,000 in cash in addition to Hong Kong currency (HKD)95,000, 17 luxury watches estimated to be worth more than RM11.1 million, five branded handbags estimated to be worth more than RM430,000, five sets of jewellery estimated to be worth more than RM50,000 as well as two laptops and two tablets,” said Azam.
Remand for the five individuals will end on Jan 18. – January 14, 2025