More than £20,000 has been stolen from four passengers aboard the doomed MH370 flight.

Five months after the Malaysia Airlines flight went missing, mysterious withdrawals totaling 111,000 RM (£20,916) have been recorded, reports claim.

A bank in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, reported the apparent discrepancies in their accounts on July 18, before lodging a police complaint, Assistant Commissioner to the crime investigation department Izany Abdul Ghany revealed.

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Mystery: £20,916 cash has been reported missing from the accounts of four MH370 passengers

It comes as the search team prepares to conduct a deep-water search across 60,000 square kilometres of the Indian Ocean.

According to reports, the transactions were made on July 18 when money from the accounts of three passengers was transferred to the account of a fourth passenger before it was removed.

'We are investigating the case as unauthorised access with intent to commit an offence,' Izany said, according to the Mirror.

'We are getting CCTV footage from the bank to identify the suspects involved.'

A source told the New Straits Times: 'We believe the suspect withdrew the money through the fourth victim's account via several automated teller machines (ATMs) in the Klang Valley.'

Search continues: Officials claim they are 'making progress' as they continue to scour 60,000 sq km of sea for the plane. The orange line indicates 'high priority' search areas; the yellow has been searched already

International effort: Australia's deputy prime minister Warren Truss unveiled the latest search plan at a press conference in Canberra last Wednesday. The government has contracted a new firm to take up the search

Efforts to locate Flight MH370 have spanned more than five months, making it one of the most expensive searches for a plane in aviation history.

The Joint Agency Coordination Centre claims the rescue operation is making 'good progress'.

Teams are still scanned a 60,000-square-kilometre area in the Indian Ocean, with a deep-water search planned for September.

Flight 370 disappeared mysteriously in March with 239 people on board after diverging from its planned route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing.

No trace: The flight carrying 239 people diverted off its route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing without trace

Confusion: The search started near Thailand but has since moved south. Hopes were ignited after satellite images from the new search area appeared to show parts of a plane in the water, but it turned out to be debris

The airline was widely criticised for its handling of the crisis.

In a desperate bid to save face following two major disasters within months, bosses are now considering rebranding the airline.

Officials said they are looking at a number of options to restructure the business which could include changing its name.

Under fire: Malaysia Airlines' commercial director Hugh Dunleavy (centre) speaks to journalists about information on flight MH370 in Beijing, China, the day after it disappeared

Among the other changes the Malaysian flag carrier is considering are new routes and expanding out-sourcing to increase profitability.

It follows the death of 298 passengers after flight MH17 was shot down over Ukraine on July 17 and the disappearance of flight MH370 on March 8, which was carrying 239 passengers and crew.