OPS SKY: PERSONAL LOANS APPROVED BY MANIPULATING TURN AROUND TIME - AZAM BAKI

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 27 (Bernama) --  A financial consultancy firm suspected of orchestrating a personal loan fraud syndicate manipulated the turnaround time during the loan approval process by banks.

Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki explained that banks typically take three to five days to approve personal loans. 

“During this period, the syndicate fabricates fraudulent cancellation letters, purportedly issued by the initial lending bank, and submits them to other financial institutions processing concurrent applications. This tactic ensures simultaneous approval of multiple loan applications from various banks.

"The syndicate also coaches borrowers to cooperate, ensuring the loan application process proceeds smoothly," he said when contacted today.

Azam elaborated that there was no falsification of salary slips, as the syndicate first settled the borrowers’ existing debts to enable them to apply for the maximum loan amount across multiple banks simultaneously.

“So far, we have seized approximately 4,000 documents and frozen 98 bank accounts with funds totaling RM17,403,644,” Azam said.

He added that the company leveraged several public figures, including artists and celebrities, as official ambassadors to promote their services.

“They advertised their offerings on Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram as well as conducted surveys and roadshows at schools, hospitals, and clinics targeting schoolteachers and other public sector employees.

“The company also actively promoted their services through organisations such as foundations, by organising CSR (corporate social responsibility) and welfare programmes for government agencies and civil servants,” he said.

The MACC recently busted a corruption and money laundering syndicate involving a financial consultancy firm and officers from numerous banks. 

The breakthrough came after the arrest of 12 individuals during an operation by MACC’s Anti-Money Laundering Division in collaboration with Bank Negara Malaysia.

Codenamed Ops Sky, it targeted 24 residential and office premises in the Klang Valley last Monday.

To date, 27 individuals have been detained comprising 18 bank officers, eight employees of the financial consultancy firm, and a member of the public.  

All of them have since been released on bail by the MACC after their remand periods ended.

-- BERNAMA