KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin told the Sessions Court that he had no knowledge his wife Zizie Izette Abdul Samad had received RM2.8mil from two unit trust agents in 2015.
The Kinabatangan MP testified that his former actress wife did not inform him about receiving the money.
“I was not informed by any persons of the matter until I was called to assist in the investigation by the MACC (Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission) sometime in 2016 or 2017,” he said yesterday.
Bung Moktar, 66, was reading his witness statement on the first day of his defence trial in a graft case involving RM2.8mil.
In his testimony, Bung Moktar said he was not aware of Zizie receiving RM2.2mil from Norhaili Ahmad Mokhtar and Madhi Abdul Hamid on June 12, 2015 at Public Bank Taman Melawati.
He also said he was not aware of Zizie receiving RM262,500 from Madhi and RM337,500 from Norhaili through investment accounts on June 17, 2015.
Bung Moktar also denied directing or asking Zizie to receive the RM2.8mil, in total, from Norhaili and Madhi on his behalf.
The court was also told that the Minister of Finance Inc (MOF Inc) had no objections to allowing Felcra Bhd to execute an investment in unit trusts for RM150mil.
According to Bung Moktar, he has no specific knowledge of any commission that Norhaili and Madhi would gain from Felcra’s investment in Public Mutual unit trusts.
When questioned by defence lawyer M. Athimulan on whether he had in any way expedited the Finance Ministry’s approval of Public Mutual’s investment product, Bung Moktar answered in the negative.
Athimulan: Have you ever directly or indirectly tried to speed up the approval from MOF Inc for this unit trust investment project?
Bung Moktar: No, because I don’t have the capacity to do so.
Athimulan: For as long as you were the Felcra chairman, have you ever discussed official Felcra work with your wife?
Bung Moktar: Never.
Bung Moktar – who was then the non-executive chairman of Felcra – was charged on May 3, 2019 with two counts of accepting bribes of RM2.2mil and RM262,500 as an inducement to obtain Felcra approval to invest RM150mil in Public Mutual unit trusts.
He was alleged to have accepted bribes from Madhi, a Public Mutual investment agent, through Zizie at Public Bank’s Taman Melawati branch between 12.30pm and 5pm on June 12, 2015.
Zizie was charged with three counts of abetting her husband over the matter at the same place, date and time.
The trial before Judge Rosli Ahmad resumes today.
