The government of Johor will help the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) to investigate fraudulent real estate and housing practices that allegedly occurred in the state, reported Bernama.
According to Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin, they are treating this case seriously, with MACC freezing 45 bank accounts holding a total of RM15.5 million and apprehending six persons, including the son of a high-ranking state official.
In line with this, Mohamed Khaled revealed that Johor State Housing and Local Government Committee Chairman Datuk Abd Latif Bandi will temporarily step down from his post as the investigation involves his son, who works as a Special Officer of a state government executive councillor.
While Latif is believed to be not involved in the scam, this move is to make sure that he does not interfere with the ongoing investigation.
“It is the state government’s commitment to ensure no interference from any parties in the case. This is to ensure transparency and for the investigations to proceed smoothly,” noted Mohamed Khaled, adding the state government will improve the process on property deals to prevent such scams from occurring.
On 24 February, MACC arrested six suspects in Johor for illegally slashing land premiums for residential and industrial developments, as well as unlawfully changing the status of Bumiputera land.
Aside from that, they also seized five high-end motorcycles, 21 luxury cars and about RM500,000 in ringgit and foreign currencies along with documents that may help in the investigation.
On Tuesday (28 February), a contractor was also apprehended in connection with the property and housing scam.
Image sourced from The Malay Mail
Diane Foo Eu Lynn, Senior Content Specialist at PropertyGuru, edited this story. To contact her about this or other stories email diane@propertyguru.com.my
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