KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 30 — The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) has detained five more people, including four enforcement officers and one retiree, as it expands its investigation into a prominent massage parlour chain suspected of large-scale bribery and tax evasion.

The latest arrests are part of a major probe that has seen the MACC freeze 124 bank accounts belonging to individuals and companies, involving a total of approximately RM13.3 million.

According to sources, the massage parlour network is believed to have paid out RM2.7 million a year in "protection money" to officers from various enforcement agencies.

The syndicate also allegedly used a two-tier accounting system to hide 80 per cent of its cash sales, resulting in an estimated annual tax leakage of RM7.56 million.

The five new male suspects, aged between their 30s and 60s, were detained at the MACC headquarters yesterday.

Four of them have since been remanded for four days to assist with the investigation, while one was released on MACC bail.

“All the suspects are believed to have received bribes from a massage parlour business company to facilitate the operations of the outlets and to ease the process of foreign worker permits for the company,” a source said.

MACC Senior Director of Special Operations, Datuk Mohamad Zamri Zainul Abidin, confirmed the arrests.

He said the case is being investigated under Sections 16 and 17 of the MACC Act 2009 for bribery, with investigators also looking into potential money laundering offences.

So far, the MACC has recorded statements from 16 witnesses and conducted searches at six locations in the Klang Valley.