KUALA LUMPUR, Mar 14 — A police report was lodged yesterday after an old video resurfaced on social media alleging that Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng had a lot of money stashed in a CIMB account.

In a statement today, special officer to the minister, Sadiq Noor Azlan said the video was fabricated to portray Lim as a dishonest person who had allegedly accepted bribery in the form of tens of millions of US dollars.

“CIMB Bank Berhad (CIMB) had on Tuesday clarified that the bank account does not exist in the bank’s records. A police report on the matter has also been lodged at the Dang Wangi police headquarters on 13 March, 2019.

“The video was viralled on social media, particularly on YouTube, to defame and tarnish the minister’s image. The fake bank account was spread with the ill-intention to raise anger, dissatisfaction and hate among Malaysians against the minister,” he said.

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Sadiq advised the public to ensure the authenticity of information shared on social media and reminded that distributing false information is deemed a criminal act under various laws, including the Penal Code (sections 505, 500, 124H, 124I) and the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 (Section 233).

“We hope the police and the Malaysian Communication and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) will probe the YouTube account user so that the person would not continue to misuse social media to spread defamation,” he said.

Yesterday, CIMB Bank had in a statement denied the claims in the video and stated it may take legal action against any party misusing any aspect of its brand identity.

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