KUALA LUMPUR: Former Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) senior deputy director Sabudin Mohd Salleh was overwhelmed with emotion and broke down in tears after being freed for the second time on two charges of obtaining a bribe amounting to RM200,000 for the issuance of work permits.
The first time was on Dec 18, 2020, when the Sessions Court ordered his release after finding the prosecution had failed to raise a prima facie case against him.
The prosecution then appealed to the High Court and last March 24, it ordered the case to be reverted back to the Sessions Court for Sabudin to enter his defence.
At Thursday’s (Sept 15) proceeding, Judge Rozina Ayob acquitted and discharged Sabudin of the two charges after finding that the prosecution had failed to prove the case.
"The court also found that it was not safe to convict the accused (Sabudin) based on all the available evidence. "Therefore, the accused is acquitted and discharged of both charges under Section 17(a) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act 2009," said Rozina.
Sabudin, 60, clad in a blue suit was in court in a wheelchair due to a knee problem.
Deputy public prosecutor Datuk Wan Shaharuddin Wan Ladin prosecuted, while lawyer K.Theivaendran represented Sabudin.
On both the charges, Sabudin, who was then senior deputy director at the DBKL Civil Engineering and Urban Transport division was charged with corruptly receiving a bribe of RM200,000 in cash from Wong May Kuan, a subcontractor of Dusari Niaga tasked with grinding and resurfacing works for Kuala Lumpur City Hall for the Year 2018/2020 (2017/A214) as an inducement for him to issue work permits to Dusari Niaga.
He was charged with committing the offences at a petrol station convenience store at Jalan Lingkaran Tengah 2, Bukit Antarabangsa here, and in front of his residence in Ukay Perdana, Ampang, on June 9, 2018 and Jan 17, 2019, respectively.
Meanwhile, Wan Shaharuddin when met by reporters said the prosecution is appealing the decision.
Sabudin has another case pending involving six charges of corruption which is still at the prosecution stage before Sessions Court Judge Azura Alwi. - Bernama
