Lavish lifestyle gave them away
BY TASNIM LOKMAN - 5 SEPTEMBER 2014 @ 8:13 AM
KUALA LUMPUR: A SPECIAL task force to eradicate institutionalised corruption have busted what it believed could be “the biggest scandal involving civil servants the country has seen”.
Investigators yesterday remanded 24 members of a syndicate, running an intricate network, believed to have cost the government RM4 billion in lost revenue.
Among those netted were two high-ranking Customs officers,
who carry the title Datuk, and 10 personnel of various ranks from the department, aged between 36 and 56.
who carry the title Datuk, and 10 personnel of various ranks from the department, aged between 36 and 56.
The investigations, which began in 2011, unearthed the suspects’ four-year money-making spree and led to the arrest of 12 other individuals.
They include company owners, agents and lorry drivers who had come under the watch of 200 graft-busters involved in the massive probe.
The Customs director, who was arrested in Ipoh, Perak, had just served in the state for about a year, following a stint as director in a southern state. The rest were picked up from various locations in the Klang Valley.
These men allegedly left a long money trail that allowed investigators to blow the lid on their illicit operations.
“Their lavish lifestyle was among what gave them away. They couldn’t have been more blatant in displaying their ill-gotten wealth,” one of the investigators said.
At the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) office here yesterday, the graft-busters unveiled the collection of seized posh cars, including a Porsche, several Audis and Mercedes.
Investigators also seized RM3 million in cash from the suspects. They have also frozen 200 bank accounts allegedly used by the syndicate’s network.
MACC Deputy Chief Commissioner (Operations) Datuk Seri Mohd Shukri Abdull said the case was far from over.
The commission, he said, was looking at the possibility of making more arrests soon.
Giving a rough indication of the extent of the illicit activities, Shukri said: “RM1.67 billion worth of cigarettes and alcohol were brought into the country under their watch since 2011... but from that amount, only a total value of RM420 million was declared.
“Investigations had shown that the goods were brought in
from Scotland, Sweden, Indonesia, Thailand, China, India and Cambodia.”
from Scotland, Sweden, Indonesia, Thailand, China, India and Cambodia.”
Shukri said this could be the tip of the iceberg as the estimated losses calculated were a result of investigations into just 10 of 70 companies that operate in the Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ).
“The Customs Department and the Inland Revenue Board are crunching the numbers to identify exactly how much the government had lost to this syndicate and how it had affected the market trend.”
On the syndicate’s modus operandi, Shukri said these men had allowed into the country high quality cigarettes and liquor, kept them at the PKFZ and released the goods after their minimal tax value were declared.
The syndicate, he added, used cash in their transactions with importers, and had under their payroll, a large number of people, including the port’s gatekeepers.
Aside from the 10 luxury cars seized from the suspects’ homes and offices, the graft-busters also took into custody cigarettes and alcohol.
Shukri expressed his gratitude to Customs director-general Datuk Sri Khazali Ahmad, whom he said was cooperative and lent his full support for the clean-up mission.
Customs chief vows clean-up
BY TASNIM LOKMANAND ALIZA SHAH - 6 SEPTEMBER 2014 @ 8:11 AM
KUALA LUMPUR: CUSTOMS Department director-general Datuk Seri Khazali Ahmad assumed his post in 2012 just as controversies simmering around the department were starting to cool off.
Two years into the job, his men were alleged to have been involved in what investigators have dubbed as “the biggest scandal involving civil servants the country has ever seen”.
Khazali is determined to arrest the problem and minimise any chances of his men, managing one of the country’s biggest income earners, going wayward.
Khazali told the New Straits Tiimes that he had directed an immediate reassessment of the department’s work processes and prevent any misdoings by his men.
“We have our own internal investigating team looking not only into this case (the alleged involvement of his men) but other cases as well,” he said, adding that the department would continuously improve its services.
A special task force to eradicate institutionalised corruption had on Wednesday remanded 24 members of a syndicate, including 12 Customs officers, running an intricate network, believed to have cost the government at least RM4 billion in lost revenue.
Meanwhile, commenting on alleged malpractices in the Port Klang Free Zone, Customs assistant director Amiruddin Mohd Akhir said the cases could have happened due to loopholes in the department’s procedures.
“What could have been happening is that the (Customs) officers in charge of the delivery station (at the free zone) only processed Form 8 (for shipment transfer).
“Aside from Form 8, owners of the consignments are also supposed to complete Form 1, where they will declare the type of goods and its value.
“Without completing Form 1, the department will not be able to collect taxes imposed on the goods,” he said, adding that what could have happened was that some officers could have closed an eye on these documents.
Amiruddin said in better monitoring consignments, ensuring there were no tampering and that they were delivered only to its assigned addresses, the department was in the process of migrating from manual processing of consignments to an electronic one.
“Currently, all processes, including the sealing of goods before transportation, are done manually. This allows for tampering as a syndicate could easily open them.
“In most of these cases, the items do not reach the duty free shops but are sold locally as smuggled goods or exported.
“This is where there will be a huge discrepancy in the amount of goods brought in through our free zone ports and the amount of taxes we collect. We also know then that these goods do not end up where they were supposed to.”
Amiruddin said soon all consignments coming from the free zone, would be equipped with Radio-frequency identification Asset tags and a tracking software, as they are delivered to their destinations.
This, he said, would allow the department to monitor their movement.
“The consignments will have tracking numbers and the Global Positioning System, which will enable us to detect if they are sent elsewhere,” he said, adding that the consignments could only be opened by Customs officers.
Meanwhile, sources told the NST that the 12 officers arrested in the massive anti-graft crackdown on Wednesday could be slapped with multiple charges.
Sources close to the case said the men could be charged under the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission, Customs, Anti-Money Laundering and Anti-Terrorism Financing and the Income Tax acts. Additional reporting by Balqis Nasir
