According to a MACC source, one of the officers carried the “Datuk” title, one was a former deputy director-general, one was overseas-based, and the others an officer involved in the sturgeon project and an administrative assistant.
The source said all the suspects were picked up at several locations in the Klang Valley between 11.30am and 1.30pm under an operation code named Ops Caviar.
“They are suspected to have abused their positions for personal gain on the project,” he said when contacted by Bernama.
Elaborating further, the source said the Felda board, at a meeting in January 2013 had asked one of the suspects to submit a detailed report on investment in the project.
“However, this suspect, without the knowledge of Felda’s board or its Legal and Financial Division, had set up Felda Carviative Sdn Bhd (FCSB) in January 2014.
“He then signed an agreement with a sturgeon farming company in South Korea worth US$45 million (RM146.25 juta) without the knowledge of the Felda board,” the source said.
The source said initial investigations by MACC found that the project did not get the approval from the Pahang Department of Environment and that a downpayment was made to the Korean company a week after FCSB was incorporated.
He said the suspect had approved about US$10 million (RM47.6 million) of Felda funds to make payments to the Korean company through FCSB without the knowledge or approval of Felda’s board.
“The contract for the sturgeon farming project entailed a Technology Transfer Service Agreement (TTSA) and Design and Build Construction Agreement (DBCA),” he said.
According to the source, the contract was signed by the suspect carrying the Datuk title and the former deputy director-general, who was also a director of FCSB.
MACC Director of Investigations Simi Abd Ghani, when contacted, confirmed the arrests and added that MACC had also seized key documents relating to the project to assist in investigations.
All the suspects would be brought to the Putrajaya Magistrate’s Court tomorrow to obtain remand orders against them, he said.
The Auditor-General’s Report Series 2 in 2015, that was tabled in the Dewan Rakyat on Nov 21, 2016, had revealed that till June 30, 2016, Felda had yet to obtain returns, assets or technology transfer concerning the project.
The report said that sturgeon fish also could not be sent to Malaysia because the aquaculture farm had yet to be built.