Seven, including Datuk and Datuk Seri, detained in Tabung Haji probe

Malaysia's Anti-Corruption Commission (SPRM) has arrested seven individuals, including prominent figures bearing Datuk and Datuk Seri titles, as part of an investigation into a Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) report concerning Lembaga Tabung Haji (TH), the national Hajj pilgrims fund.

The arrested individuals comprise a CEO of a shipping company, a company director, a former director, and four former senior management staff from TH, aged between 50s and 60s. They are suspected of submitting false documents and engaging in corrupt practices that allegedly caused significant losses to TH.

Sources indicate that one suspect, a Datuk-titled CEO in his 60s, is accused of falsifying contract documents for a petroleum company to benefit his own firm. Two other suspects, a Datuk and a Datuk Seri also in their 60s, are alleged to have misled TH officials into investing in a construction company with promises of a Bursa Malaysia listing.

Furthermore, four former TH senior management personnel, including a Datuk Seri and a woman, are suspected of corruption related to a TH lease agreement for four hotels in Saudi Arabia. This deal, valued at SR2.49 billion, reportedly resulted in financial losses for the fund.

While two male suspects, the CEO of the shipping company and the director of the construction company, have been remanded, the other five were released on SPRM bail due to health issues. The investigation is proceeding under Sections 18 and 16(a)(A) of the SPRM Act 2009.