Rafizi claims second wife of former deputy minister had links to LCS scandal

PETALING JAYA: PKR deputy president Rafizi Ramli alleges that companies linked to the second wife of a former deputy defence minister, are involved in the littoral combat ship (LCS) scandal.

Rafizi said an internal investigation report had revealed the woman's name, and she was alleged linked to an offshore company with units incorporated in tax havens such as Malta and Labuan.

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He said the companies were also named in documents contained in the Paradise Papers offshore leaks database.

“The woman was also a shareholder in another offshore company incorporated in Malta which has shares in the Labuan-based unit.

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He claimed that the company was a “dummy corporation”, which resembled a real French company which produces spare parts.

Citing the investigation papers, Rafizi said the company was appointed as the spare parts supplier for the LCS project.

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“The appointment was based on fake information that it had the licence from the French government to export defence spare parts (when in actuality it did not have such licenses),” he said.

He claimed that RM210mil was paid to the purported French company but it was swindled to the dummy corporations set up in the tax haven jurisdictions.

He said the companies were also appointed as technical consultants when they did not have the expertise.

“They sent invoices for work that was not completed. A total of RM23.37mil were siphoned through this method during the early days of the project which is from 2011 to 2014,” he claimed.

“My checks revealed that the the misappropriation of public funds from the LCS project has been going on for years and was well planned”, he said.

Names have been withheld pending comment.