Photo credit: Ilham Tower Facebook

KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 21): The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) has on Thursday seized the Ilham Tower that is said to be owned by former finance minister Tun Daim Zainuddin.

The 60-storey building is located at the golden triangle area in the city centre, at No 8, Jalan Binjai.

The seizure order, dated Dec 18 and signed by deputy public prosecutor Ahmad Akram Gharib, was made under Section 38(1) of the MACC Act 2009.

Section 38(1) pertains to the seizure of immovable property that is found to be a subject matter of an offence under the MACC Act, or is the evidence of the commission of such an offence.

A notice of the seizure order has been placed and advertised in several media. A source from the MACC confirmed the seizure order.

A copy of the seizure notice that was placed in a local news outlet.

The notice also stipulated that those who disobeyed the seizure order can be fined RM50,000, or up to five times the value of the asset, as stipulated under Section 38(5) of the MACC Act.

"Under Section 38 of the MACC Act, the seizure of immovable property could be subject to Section 41 of the MACC Act, which deals with forfeiture without prosecution or conviction, the Public Prosecutor may apply for forfeiture of the said property (within 18 months)," the source said on condition of anonymity with The Edge.

Meanwhile, Channel News Asia (CNA) reported that the seizure took place following the former minister’s refusal to submit to petitions issued by the MACC for him and his family to declare his assets.

It is understood that Daim is being investigated over purported money laundering in relation to corporate transactions involving Renong Bhd and United Engineers Malaysia Bhd, CNA wrote.

Prior to this, a senior MACC source had confirmed with The Edge in late May that the anti-graft agency was looking into the Renong-UEM deal in the 1990s.

The Ilham Tower was where the Council of Eminent Persons, which was formed by then prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad after Pakatan Harapan came into power in 2018, held its meetings. Daim was its chairman.

With a diagonal exo-skeleton, the tower comprises 33 floors of office suites and 22 floors of serviced apartments, according to its website. The building had in 2017 won the Gold Award of Special Merit by the Association of Consulting Engineers Malaysia.

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