MACC: We did not freeze bank account

PETALING JAYA: The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) says it is not behind the freezing of a bank account set up by the Pekan Umno division to raise funds for the RM1 million court bail imposed on former premier Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak.
"No, we did not freeze their account and we are not aware of it. They should check with the bank first. We are simply clarifying this though the parties behind the drive did not accuse the MACC but there appears to be insinuations of the commission being responsible. We are only after bank accounts that received funds from 1MDB," MACC deputy chief commissioner (operations) Datuk Seri Azam Baki told theSun today.
However, sources in the banking industry said it was highly likely the the Bank Rakyat account, which was recently opened under an individual's name, was suspended due to the bank's reporting system.
"They should have been aware of this. When large amounts of money are suddenly deposited into an account and the sum swells rapidly, it is suspicious and might trigger an alert with the bank. The system then suspends the account from carrying out further transactions. These are measures taken by banks to monitor suspicious activities such as money laundering. The account is not frozen but simply suspended pending the bank's investigations," said the source.
The account was one of the two meant to collect funds to pay for the ex-prime minister's bail.
Pekan Wanita Umno chief Datuk Zalmah Abdul Rahman had told the media recently that the bank account was frozen and transactions including deposits were being rejected.
The fund, that was launched last week soon after Najib was charged for criminal breach of trust and power abuse, has to date raised more than RM220,000, according to those behind the fundraising efforts.