The police has arrested a self-proclaimed Lebanese billionaire who created a sensation last week with the possibly dubious announcement of a RM1 billion donation to a cancer foundation.

A team of police officers nabbed Lebanese businessman Elie Yousef Najem at 6.15pm at his apartment at his Villa Putra Condominium near the Putra World Trade Centre in Kuala Lumpur.

Elie, 45, made newspaper headlines after announcing a "donation" of US$275 million (RM1.03 billion) to the National Cancer Council (Makna) to build a cancer treatment and research hospital last Saturday.

Following this, there were complaints from several quarters who claimed to have been cheated by the businessman.

Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi on Tuesday ordered the police to immediately investigate the public complaints against Elie, who also claimed that he was suffering from malignant brain tumor.

The police said that Eli, who claimed to be a billionaire and a doctor, was being investigated in connection with four alleged cheating cases.

A fifth case of alleged cheating involving him was due for hearing in court in June.

Elie is currently being held at the police headquarters in Bukit Aman and he is expected to be brought to court tomorrow.

Outrageous claims

Since his 'generosity' was unveiled at a hasty press conference last Saturday, newspapers have front-paged a series of increasingly outrageous claims by the businessman, including his estimated net asset worth of US$46 billion - which would make him the world's third richest man.

It has also been revealed that Eli has overstayed in the country; he is apparently wanted by authorities in three countries and by Interpol; and that he has allegedly left a trail of bounced cheques in Malaysia.

Elie, who holds a social visit pass that expired on Sept 21 last year, is said to be currently on a RM20,000 bail, but the nature of the charge is not known.

For all his claims of having a huge business empire, this has not been verified. An Internet search could not establish his purported ownership of a Canadian caf chain.

Elie has also claimed that he had extended a RM2 billion loan to finance the construction of the Penang Bridge, but Works Minister S Samy Vellu and Penang Chief Minister Dr Koh Tsu Koon have refuted this.

Denying allegations of fraud following numerous complaints of resources mismanagement, debts worth millions of ringgit and bounced cheques, the businessman said his identity has been mistaken with that of a namesake, a Somalian in Canada.