Malaysia anti-graft body investigates ex-finance minister for corruption

Malaysia's anti-graft agency has said it is investigating a former finance minister and key ally of ex-prime minister Mahathir Mohamad under the country's abuse of power and money laundering laws.

In a statement on Saturday, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) confirmed media reports this month that it had seized Ilham Tower, a 60-storey building in Malaysia's capital Kuala Lumpur, as part of its investigation into Daim Zainuddin.

Daim, 85, said in a statement on Thursday that he denied all wrongdoing and said he was not informed what offence he had allegedly committed despite repeated queries to the MACC.

He also described the probe against him as a "political witch-hunt" driven by the anti-graft agency and Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.

Anwar, who came to power last year, has vowed to weed out high-level corruption, but has faced accusations by some critics of targeting political rivals.

The MACC said on Saturday it had acted independently according to the law, and that it had opened investigations against Daim in February based on information contained in the Pandora Papers - a massive leak of financial records in 2021 which revealed offshore assets held by politicians and public figures worldwide.

In it, Daim, his associates and family members were reported to have held assets worth at least 25 million pounds ($31.82 million).