Order Didn T Come From Me Says Ex Macc Chief On Unfreezing Tycoon S Account

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Former MACC chief commissioner Mohd Shukri Abdull has denied involvement in instructing the unfreezing of business tycoon Lim Soon Peng’s accounts which were subject to 1MDB probe back in 2018
Responding to claims of political interference in the matter, Shukri (above) stressed that he did not take orders from any ministers, even the prime minister
“I always maintain my integrity
“In any investigation, I never adhere to instructions including by ministers or the prime minister. Even in this case, I never issued instructions to my officers to unfreeze the accounts in question,” he said in a statement today
His statement came following the claim by de facto Law Minister Takiyuddin Hassan that former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad and former finance minister Lim Guan Eng had interfered in the matter. Takiyuddin (photo) alleged in the Dewan Rakyat yesterday that a 2018 letter of representation written by Soon Peng’s lawyers to Shukri included handwritten notes which had been minuted by Mahathir and again by Guan Eng
Back then, Soon Peng’s bank accounts were frozen over investigations into RM4 million in transactions relating to 1MDB-linked funds from former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak
“I am in the opinion that the embezzlement conducted by the previous prime minister should not be blamed on Lim Soon Peng. Therefore, any freezing of personal or company accounts should not remain,” the minute allegedly by Mahathir read
Takiyuddin then claimed that Guan Eng had written to then attorney-general Thommy Thomas to release the accounts as instructed by Mahathir
In response, Shukri today also said that he only took instructions from the deputy public prosecutors in any probe, and “not from unrelated parties”
“If true the accounts were unfrozen, that was not by my orders,” he added
Shukri served at the MACC for 32 years and retired in 2016 as deputy chief commissioner (operations) at the height of investigations into the 1MDB financial scandal
However, he returned in May 2018 to head the anti-graft body under the Pakatan Harapan government and finally left in June 2019
This is not the first time the allegations have surfaced regarding the case. In June, Penang PAS Youth made a similar claim and accused Thomas and Guan Eng of abusing their position to aid the businessperson
This after an alleged letter by Thomas to Guan Eng on the matter, dated June 14, last year, was posted on a whistleblower site "Peniup Wisel Siber" on June 2.  - Mkini

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