KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 3): The Malaysian graft-busting agency is ready to jointly investigate with the Inland Revenue Board (IRB) potential corruption involving offshore financial accounts, an English daily reported.
Cooperation between agencies would be crucial in tracing the flow of suspicious funds, especially where tax evasion could overlap with corruption, abuse of power or money laundering, the New Straits Times reported citing Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki.
For now however, "we do not know which companies are on the IRB's radar”, Azam was quoted as saying. “We are willing to conduct joint investigations on corruption-related issues if the IRB is willing to share information with us."
The remark follows recent disclosure by the IRB that nearly 15,000 Malaysians had offshore accounts containing some RM10 billion in combined funds. The offshore accounts are located in jurisdictions including Luxembourg, Hong Kong, Guernsey, the Cayman Islands, the Bahamas, and Bermuda.
To avoid penalties and legal action, the IRB advises Malaysians with unreported income and offshore financial accounts to come forward voluntarily soon to make the necessary declarations.