Ahmad Zahid orchestrated RM7.5mil money laundering scheme, court told

KUALA LUMPUR (Bernama): Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi orchestrated the money laundering scheme amounting to RM7.5mil using the service of a money changer to turn the money into cheques that were placed in various fixed deposit accounts, the High Court was told.

Deputy public prosecutor Harris Ong Mohd Jeffrey Ong submitted that money changer Omar Ali Abdullah, being the agent, received instruction from Ahmad Zahid to convert RM7,511,250.20 into 35 cheques and subsequently, the accused handed the cheques to Messrs Lewis & Co - a trustee of Yayasan Akalbudi - belonging to the former deputy prime minister.

Harris Ong said the funds were later placed in various fixed deposit accounts.

"Omar Ali, upon the accused’s instruction, had received cash from an unknown individual. He (Omar Ali) used his wife, Kamarunisah Ahmad Shah’s company (Ekares Sdn Bhd) to issue 35 cheques to Lewis & Co.

"He then banked in the cash to convert it into Ekareas’s cheques and asked his wife to confirm the payment if requested by the bank.

“He later filled in the amount and recipient on every cheque and conveyed all the cheques to the accused,” Harris Ong said in his submission to rebut the defence’s argument on 27 money laundering charges before judge Datuk Collin Lawrence Sequerah.

Harris Ong said Kamarunisah did not know about the use of Ekares’ cheques and the amount filled in each cheque and who would be the recipients.

On the issue of RM500,000 in cash (part of RM7,511,250.20) received by Omar Ali, the DPP said that it was from Yayasan Al-Bukhari (YALB).

"The cash was delivered by an unknown man to Omar Ali, which shows that the transaction was suspicious and doubtful.

"If it is true the money came from donors for the purpose of charity, why did all the cash needed to be converted into cheques and ending up in Lewis & Co client’s account rather than Yayasan Akalbudi’s account?

"Without any proper documentation, we say that all the cash received by Omar Ali came from illegal sources and not YALB. Omar Ali did not know who the man (who delivered the cash) was and there was no indication the man was a YALB representative,” he added.

For the 27th charge, Ahmad Zahid is accused of ordering money changer Omar Ali Abdullah to convert cash amounting to RM7,511,250.20 into 35 cheques made out to Lewis & Co as fixed deposits in Maybank, which was a form of money laundering derived from illegal sources.

Meanwhile, Harris Ong said that based on charges one to 25, Lewis & Co received a total of 92 cheques amounting to RM76.9mil, from various individuals and entities that had no business links with the firm.

He said the firm’s partner, B. Muralidharan had testified that he received the cheques from Ahmad Zahid at the former DPM’s Kajang house or had the cheques passed to him at the firm.

"The manner in which the cheques were delivered by the accused and the directive given to Muralidharan show that Ahmad Zahid engaged directly in giving instruction to Muralidharan to deposit all the cheques received to be placed in 25 fixed deposits as per charge one to 25,” he said.

Ahmad Zahid, 68, is facing 47 charges - 12 for CBT, eight for corruption and 27 for money laundering - involving tens of millions of ringgit belonging to YAB.

The prosecution will continue its submission tomorrow. - Bernama