A cooperative board member, who is believed to have abused his power in the RM3.2 million fund scandal, has now been remanded for five days.
This 46-year-old suspect is no ordinary person who is a special project officer in a government agency in Central Perak.
However, who would have thought that behind his position, there was an accusation of embezzlement of cooperative money.
The individual is accused of transferring funds of RM700,000 and RM2.5 million to company accounts belonging to his younger brother and his own wife.
More surprisingly, no project was carried out when the transfer of the money took place, as if the money was 'unseen'.
This criminal act was revealed after an internal investigation conducted by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) which destroyed trust in the administration and integrity of the cooperative.
At the Ipoh Magistrate's Court, Magistrate Siti Hanum Mohamad Sah did not hesitate to issue a remand order on the suspect to obtain more information about the criminal action involved.
This case is being investigated under Section 23 of the MACC Act 2009 which includes abuse of power by public officials.
Perak MACC director, Datuk Ahmad Sabri Mohamed, confirmed the arrest and insisted that the investigation is still ongoing, with more information to be shared when new evidence is obtained.
This case has become the talk of the town, raising big questions about how investment funds can be misused in such a way.
Many are calling for stricter supervision to be implemented in the management of cooperatives to prevent cases like this from recurring.
The authorities are also tracking the flow of this 'missing' money and looking for other individuals who may be involved in this cunning scheme.
