THE Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) will be probing into the possibility of match-fixing and corruption in the national football league following recent attacks on players.
MACC chief Azam Baki said injured players will be given time to recover before MACC launches the investigation.
"We are waiting to interview Akhyar (Rashid) and Faisal (Halim). We need to wait for these players to recover first. At the moment, they seem traumatised," he said.
He said MACC is considering all possible motives for the attacks.
He said a main player in the national team, referring to Faisal, was the victim of an acid attack.
"We are concerned because he is a main player in Harimau Malaya. Maybe someone wants them to negotiate a deal with the bookie or maybe they are involved in match-fixing.
“So yes, we are interested to see if there are elements of abuse here," he said at a dialogue session with news editors in Putrajaya on Tuesday.
Besides Akhyar and Faisal, another national player, Syafiq Rahim, was also the victim of an attack.
In the first case on May 2, Akhyar was injured when he was robbed in Terengganu.
On May 5, Faisal suffered fourth-degree burns after he was splashed with acid at a supermarket in Kota Damansara, Selangor.
Two days later, the car window of the former captain of the national football squad, Safiq, was broken in Johor Baru.
The Classified Crime Investigation Unit and the Bukit Aman Criminal Investigation Department are probing into the cases. – May 29, 2024.
