It is widely known that corruption is not an issue that is easy to handle. This vile act has evolved into a crime that is increasingly complex and involves advanced technology.
However, in an effort to strengthen investigations and law enforcement, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) has utilised techniques such as polygraph tests to unravel the truth through scientific methods.
The seriousness of this effort can be seen through the recent hand-over of appointment certificates to 16 MACC officers as members of the Certified Polygraph Examiner Team .
These officers were trained by an agency accredited by the American Polygraph Association (APA) through the Polygraph Examiner Diploma Programme, which took place over three months and actively supports MACC investigations across Malaysia.
MACC Chief Commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki has emphasised that corruption crimes are becoming increasingly challenging, especially with the use of digital technology and cryptocurrencies to cover traces of financial transactions.
Therefore, he explained, polygraph is one of the important scientific approaches in addressing the complexity of crime.
Polygraph is an effective tool for identifying and developing information due to its accuracy, which is recognised as exceeding 90 per cent, depending on the techniques used.
Information obtained from polygraphs can assist investigation teams in identifying the direction of a probe, thus potentially saving time, cost and effort in the investigative process.
Essentially, the test is a tool that measures physiological responses to questions posed to suspects or witnesses, following best practices used by polygraph practitioners in other countries.
At MACC, polygraphs are not only conducted to assist the investigation team in unraveling cases involving misconduct, abuse of power and corruption, but have also been used in the screening process for new commission officers since 2021.
Such a screening approach for officers joining law enforcement agencies has also been widely applied in the United States and other countries.
Based on MACC's experience since the 1990s, polygraph tests are also seen as a potentially effective tool in managing issues related to integrity and honesty.
For example, if someone has committed a crime but has never faced legal action, the test is capable of detecting such behaviour, thus improving the accuracy of profiling for screened candidates.
This screening process includes the involvement of candidates in drug abuse, serious crimes, violence, moral issues and fraud in job applications.
Polygraphs can also be used in detecting a history of making false claims, case item identification, syndicate cases, espionage activities, sexual harassment, false complaints and other criminal offences.
Interestingly, they can also be used as a requirement for the Licensed Prisoner Release Programme, as practised in the United Kingdom since 2014, for offenders of sexual crimes.
In the context of corruption investigations, based on previous cases, polygraph tests have a proven effectiveness in helping to narrow the scope of an investigation and confirming the involvement of suspects.
For example, in one case, at the early stage of the probe, the investigation team failed to locate the cash hidden by the suspect.
However, through the use of polygraph tests, the location of the cash was eventually discovered — in an aquarium in the suspect's office.
In the context of Malaysian law, although polygraph test results have not been admitted as evidence in court, they are used as part of the investigation to speed up the process of obtaining solid evidence.
Although polygraph tests have been used at MACC since the early 1990s, significant development only began around 2015 to 2018.
During this period, the number of polygraph examiners increased from three to seven.
By 2024, the team continued to expand with 16 officers trained by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Academy (MACA).
The training involves international cooperation, with instructors from the US and the UK, covering modules on equipment handling, testing techniques, physiology, psychology, and interview techniques.
This demonstrates MACC's commitment to strengthen investigative techniques through the use of polygraph tests.
In this regard, MACA in Kuala Lumpur is also seen as having the potential to become a key hub for the training of polygraph examiners in the future.
Through collaboration with the APA, MACA has the potential to expand Malaysia's influence in the use of polygraph in corruption investigations, thereby making Malaysia a hub for investigative science training.
From another perspective, these tests actually offer suspects or witnesses the opportunity to prove the truth of their statements, and this is crucial in increasingly complex corruption investigations.
The use of polygraph tests has now become a symbol of transparency and justice in MACC's efforts to combat corruption.
* The writer is coordinator, MACC Polygraph Team