Kuala Pilah candidate in GE15 pleads not guilty to cheating man of RM171,500

JELI: The former Parti Warisan (Warisan) candidate for the Kuala Pilah Parliamentary seat in the 15th General Election (GE15) pleaded not guilty in the Magistrate's Court here on Monday to a charge of defrauding a man two years ago.

According to the charge sheet, Datuk Azman Idris, 55, was charged with cheating Chin Yet Lun, 37, in a non-existent logging business where the victim handed over RM171,500 to the two bank accounts of the accused.

The money was deposited into OCBC Bank and Standard Chartered Bank accounts in the Belimbing sub-district in Batu Melintang, here between Sept 27 and Dec 10, 2021.

He was charged under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating, which provides for up to 10 years' imprisonment with whipping and a fine if convicted.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Nur Kamilah Che Ibrahim prosecuted while the accused was unrepresented.

Earlier, Nur Kamilah asked the court to offer bail of RM30,000 with one surety and the additional condition that the passport of the accused be handed over to the court.

However, Azman pleaded for a lower bail because he does not have a fixed income and has to support a wife and four children.

Magistrate Nik Habri Muhamad then allowed a bail of RM15,000, and ordered the accused to hand over his passport before next Thursday and set Dec 31 for re-mention.

In the five-cornered contest, the Kuala Pilah seat was secured by Datuk Adnan Abu Hassan from Barisan Nasional, while Azman only managed to garner 333 votes. –Bernama