Not so slick - directors nabbed over cooking oil subsidy payments

The MACC has detained four company directors for alleged involvement in a syndicate responsible for the misappropriation of cooking oil subsidy payments.

MACC deputy chief commissioner (Operations) Ahmad Khusairi Yahaya today confirmed all four arrests.

“According to the MACC's rough calculation, the syndicate has been profiting on subsidy payments of RM21.6 million for three years and there are nine companies that are controlled by this syndicate,” he said in a statement.

All the suspects, aged between 30 and 41, were picked up in Selangor and Putrajaya yesterday.

"The MACC has also frozen 12 accounts belonging to individuals and companies totalling over RM25 million," he said.

Ahmad Khusairi said a check with the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry found that the syndicate was given a quota of 1,000 tonnes of cooking oil per month.

“These companies were supposed to process and repack the cooking oil into 1 kg packets and supply them to retailers and the public especially the rural community, but what happened was the cooking oil, which was not repacked, was collected and exported out of the country.

“This leakage caused the supply of cooking oil to decline in the market,” he said.

Ahmad Khusairi said in addition to doubling profits by selling them overseas, these companies also demanded subsidy payments from the government for the packaging and supply of the so-called cooking oil.

“In just three years, a sum of RM21.6 million was claimed and embezzled while all the suspects were brought to the Putrajaya Magistrate's Court this morning for remand application under Section 117 of the Criminal Procedure Code," he said.

He said the case is being investigated under Section 18 of the MACC Act 2009.

- Bernama