KUALA LUMPUR, July 3 — Ihsan Perdana Sdn Bhd today denied that it was a conduit to channel RM42 million from 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) into Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s personal accounts.
Responding to a report by the Wall Street Journal alleging that the firm diverted funds meant for corporate social responsibility programmes towards the prime minister, the firm said the allegation was baseless and untrue.
“I strongly deny any transfer of money into the personal account of the prime minister as alleged by the media reports,” Ihsan Perdana managing director Datuk Dr Shamsul Anwar Sulaiman said in a statement.
“The corporate social responsibility projects carried out by Ihsan Perdana are fully audited and accounted for.”
In its report today, the WSJ, citing documents from Malaysian investigators currently scrutinising the troubled 1MDB’s financials, claimed that the money trail shows that some US$700 million (RM2.6 billion) were moved between government agencies, banks and companies before it ended up in Najib’s accounts.
These documents, the international business paper claimed, include bank transfer forms and flowcharts put together by investigators to shed light on 1MDB’s cash flow.
Among the alleged deposits were RM42 million from SRC International Sdn Bhd, a former 1MDB subsidiary, which was funnelled through Ihsan Perdana.
The Prime Minister’s Office and 1MDB have both denied the allegations, while the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) today said it has opened an investigation into SRC International.
