Mahmud Abu Bekir denies being a playboy

KUALA LUMPUR: Businessman Datuk Seri Mahmud Abu Bekir Tun Abdul Taib denied in the Syariah High Court here that he had affairs with many women, which his former wife claimed contributed to their broken marriage.

He denied that his marriage with Shahnaz Abdul Majid failed because of his hot temper and playboy attitude.

"I only knew a female Muslim convert from Australia who attended religious classes in Singapore in 1999," he said when cross-examined by Shahnaz's counsel, Akbardin Abdul Kadir.

Shahnaz, testifying in the court on Sept 2, claimed that her former husband also had affairs with Latvian and Russian women.

Mahmud Abu Bekir also said that the claims by his former wife of several incidents, including physical abuse by him, between 1994 and 1999 were fictitious.

He was testifying during the hearing of Shahnaz's alimony claims, totalling RM100mil.

On May 11, 2011, the Syariah High Court confirmed the divorce of Mahmud Abu Bekir and Shahnaz.

The couple, who married on Jan 9, 1992, have a son, Raden Murya, 22.

The hearing before syariah judge Muhamad Abdul Karim Wahab continues on Jan 21, next year. - Bernama