Two more arrests made in FIC investigations into London hotel

PETALING JAYA: Two more people have been arrested in investigations into Felda Investment Corporation Sdn Bhd’s (FIC) purchase of a high-end property in London.

One is a 44-year-old lawyer from a law firm based in Kuala Lumpur while the other is 29-year-old woman, who is a legal assistant in the same firm.

Both suspects were said to be involved in the preparation of the sale and purchase agreement between the owner and a third party, leading to the purchase of the hotel by FIC.

Sources said both suspects were detained at about 4pm on Thursday at the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) headquarters in Putrajaya.

MACC director of investigations Datuk Simi Abd Ghani confirmed the arrests.

He said more people would be picked up in relation to the probe.

On Monday, former FIC chief executive officer Zaid Abdul Jalil was arrested after being questioned for almost 12 hours over the purchase of the hotel.

The London hotel, comprising 62 units of guest rooms and two units of three-bedroom serviced apartments, was said to be bought at at least £20mil (RM112mil) above its value.

FIC acquired the four-star hotel between 2013 and 2015 for £60mil (RM330mil). Former Felda chairman Tan Sri Mohd Isa Abdul Samad launched the hotel in December 2014.

On July 21, two former key officials, aged 36 and 45, of a valuation firm were detained as part of the investigations. Both men were suspected to have manipulated the purchase price, resulting in the FIC paying higher than the actual value.

The arrests came following statements recorded from 11 key witnesses and seizures of dozens of boxes of documents from the FIC office in Balai Felda.