The two senior Foreign Ministry officials who were arrested by Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission(MACC) on Tuesday were said to have planned in advance their false claims during the APEC Summit in Hawaii, United States.

Astro AWANI understands that the suspects were proficient in the intricacies of financial procedures of government or Ministry programmes.

“I believe that the false claims were planned in advance. Prior to this they have already breached various treasury rules and regulations, “ said a source within MACC.

The two officers are believed to have made claims of AS$126,000 (RM378,000).

Claims expense statements were submitted to the Malaysian Ambassador to the United States in conjunction with the APEC summit between November 3 to 16 in 2011 .

The claims are related to the usage of vehicles and the logistical arrangements. The cash was received from the account of the Malaysian embassy in Washington (KBMW).

“The amount that the two officers claimed for was not the same as the amount given to them.”

“From the results of our checks with the transport company involved, we also found that the amount paid to them was 30% less than the amount being claimed for,” added the source.

The two officers are believed working together when submitting statements of expenditure to KBMW containing false particulars of the conference.

At the same time, MACC does not rule out the possibility that the two officers were forced to commit the offence due to an order from their superiors.

On Tuesday, MACC arrested the two, in their 40s, to assist in their investigations. They were being held at the MACC headquarters in Putrajaya.

The investigations are classified under the Anti-Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism Act 2001 . MACC director of investigations Commissioner Datuk Mustafar Ali confirmed the arrest.