MACC received information from Johor regent on syndicate: Azam

The MACC revealed today that Johor Regent, Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim had provided information that assisted the investigations under Op Sohor, which are currently still ongoing.

MACC chief commissioner Azam Baki said the regent also wanted to curb smuggling at the country’s borders.

“I would like to inform that His Royal Highness Tunku Mahkota Johor, as regent of Johor, has been very cooperative in this matter and wants such activities to be curbed,” he told the media after the close of the Anti-Corruption Graduates Convention (Komawar) in Cyberjaya yesterday.

Azam said the syndicate is believed to be focused only on the southern region of the country, with no new arrests being made.

“I expect so far there have been no (new arrests), if there are any links, (for instance) when we look into money laundering, it might be possible there are other parties benefitting from this activity, and if so, we will investigate further,” he said.

Azam also said that the commission was looking into the reasons behind the existence of the online media company that two of the suspects arrested under Op Sohor were working for, and confirmed that both of the suspects were not from any mainstream media.

“They work for a company whose name I can’t reveal, and we’re looking into why it was set up,” Azam said, adding that they believed that both the suspects acted as enablers by leaking information to the syndicate.

The MACC had arrested five senior armed forces officers on Wednesday for allegedly leaking military operation information to smugglers and colluding with a syndicate to smuggle in contraband, including drugs and cigarettes, estimated to be worth RM5 million a month.

Meanwhile, Azam said during his speech at the close of Komawar that it was organised not only to provide exposure and education on corruption and integrity but to instil values and build character among university students.

The biennial Komawar’s objective is to shape a generation of graduates to reject corruption and allow youth to support integrity and transparency in the country’s administration, he added.

- Bernama

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