KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court has dismissed the prosecution’s application to transfer the corruption cases of Kinabatangan MP Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin and his wife Datin Seri Zizie Izette A. Samad to the High Court.
They are facing corruption charges involving RM2.8mil.
The sum was allegedly for the obtaining of approval for Felcra Bhd to invest RM150mil in Public Mutual Bhd Unit Trust.
Justice Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali made the decision after hearing the prosecution’s application to transfer the two cases from the Sessions Court to the High Court.
In his judgment, Justice Mohd Nazlan said the charges against the two in relation to offences under Section 17(a) and Section
28(1)(c) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act 2009 did not appear to involve any novelty in points of law which may arise in cases for such offences.
He said the transfer should not be ordered if it did not promote judicial efficiency and caused delays in the commencement of trial since this would not meet the ends of justice.
“For among others the foregoing broad reasons, I dismiss the application to transfer the two cases to the High Court, ” he said.
Prior to that, MACC Deputy Public Prosecutor Allan Suman Pillai had said that the written submissions to transfer the case were filed on Aug 7 pursuant to Section 417 of the Criminal Procedure Code.
Lawyer Datuk K. Kumaraendran, who represented Bung Moktar, 60, and Zizie Izette, 41, said his clients had no objection to their cases being heard at the High Court.
Following the development, Sessions Court judge Rozina Ayob fixed Sept 20 for case management of their cases.
Allan told the media that the prosecution asked for a joint trial and the defence did not object.
He said the document bundle relating to the cases had been handed over to the defence.
Rozina allowed the application and instructed both parties to furnish the witness list on Sept 20.
On May 3, Bung Moktar pleaded not guilty at the Sessions Court to three counts of receiving bribes totalling RM2.8mil for obtaining approval for Felcra Bhd to make a RM150mil investment in unit trust products of Public Mutual Bhd.
According to the first charge, Bung Moktar, then Felcra’s non-executive chairman, was accused of taking a bribe of RM2.2mil from Public Mutual investment agent Madhi Abdul Hamid, 38, through his wife.
He was accused of committing the act as a reward for obtaining approval from the Minister of Finance II for Felcra.
The offence was allegedly committed at Public Bank Bhd, Taman Melawati branch, between 12.30pm and 5pm on June 12, 2015.
For the second charge, Bung Moktar was accused of taking for himself a bribe of RM262, 500 from the same individual (Madhi) through an account of the bank’s investment product and registered under the name of Zizie Izette.
He was also accused of taking for himself a bribe of RM337, 500 from Public Mutual investment agent Norhaili Ahmad Mokhtar, 42, through a Public Ittikal Sequel Fund account registered under the name of Zizie Izette.Both offences were allegedly committed at the same location at 12.16pm and 12.28pm on June 19, 2015.
Zizie Izette, a former actress, pleaded not guilty to three counts of abetting her husband on the same offences at the same places, dates and times. — Bernama
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