PUTRAJAYA, March 5 -- The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) has denied allegations that it had targeted Chai Jin Shern, also known as James Chai, saying the notice issued to trace him was part of a standard investigative procedure after attempts to contact him failed.

In a statement yesterday, the commission said several claims made by Chai about the investigation were inaccurate and misleading.

"The allegation that the press conference was held solely to target James Chai is entirely untrue and baseless," MACC said.

It explained that the press conference in question was a regular monthly media briefing where investigators updated reporters on several ongoing cases, including Op Middlemen, Op Heart, investigations involving I...