He said banks typically take three to five days to approve personal loans.

“The syndicate fabricated fraudulent cancellation letters, purportedly issued by the initial lending bank, and submitted them to other financial institutions processing concurrent applications.

“This tactic ensured simultaneous approval of multiple loan applications from various banks.

“The syndicate also coached borrowers to cooperate, ensuring the loan application process proceeded smoothly,” Bernama quoted him as saying.

Azam said salary slips did not have to be falsified 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 4,000 documents and frozen 98 bank accounts with funds totalling RM17,403,644,” he said.

Azam said the company leveraged several public figures, including artistes and celebrities, as official ambassadors to promote its services.

“They advertised their offerings on Facebook, TikTok and Instagram and 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 corporate social responsibility programmes for government agencies and civil servants,” he said.

MACC recently busted a loan fraud syndicate involving a financial consultancy firm and officers from numerous banks after it arrested 12 people in an operation by its anti-money laundering division in collaboration with Bank Negara Malaysia.

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

To date, 27 individuals have been detained – 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 MACC after their remand periods ended.