KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 21): A former chief executive of Lembaga Tabung Haji has been detained by anti-graft investigators, according to people familiar with the matter.
The remand, which runs until Aug 27, was to facilitate alleged misappropriation involving investments and shares worth about RM190 million. The order was issued by Magistrate Ezrene Zakariah at the Putrajaya Magistrate’s Court on Friday morning.
The male suspect, who is in his 60s, was detained at about 3.30pm on Thursday after he turned up at the headquarters of Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) in Putrajaya to have his statement recorded, one of the people told The Edge.
Datuk Seri Abd Halim Aman, the MACC chief commissioner, confirmed the arrest to The Edge and said the case is being investigated under Section 23 of the MACC Act 2009.
A person can be remanded in Malaysia without being charged in court first to give more time to the authorities to complete the investigation and to decide whether there is enough evidence to charge the suspect.
Authorities can only be initially hold a person for 24 hours and further remand will require a court order. At the remand stage, a suspect is still considered innocent.
Investigations are ramping up since the long-awaited release of the Royal Commission of Inquiry report into Tabung Haji’s affairs between 2014 and 2020 in July.
The panel was set up in 2022 to investigate the management and operations of Tabung Haji amid concerns over an estimated RM11 billion asset-liability gap as well as compliance with the law governing the board.
The investigation has now snagged eight individuals, including the chief executive officer of an oil-and-gas services firm, company directors, and four former senior executives of Tabung Haji.