PUTRAJAYA: The hearing of Tan Sri Mohd Isa Samad's leave application at the Federal Court to review his conviction and sentence in his RM3mil graft case involving a hotel purchase in Sarawak has been postponed.
In proceedings here on Wednesday (May 13), a three-judge panel chaired by Chief Judge of Malaya Justice Hashim Hamzah allowed an application by Mohd Isa's defence team to obtain a copy of the Court Recording and Transcription (CRT) from the Federal Court.
Other judges on the panel were the Chief Judge of Sabah and Sarawak, Justice Azizah Nawawi, and a Federal Court judge, Justice Collin Lawrence Sequerah.
"Due to a dispute over what transpired during the open court proceedings before this, and as both parties have sought a copy of the CRT, the court is of the opinion that this application must be allowed.
"The court allows the CRT for Feb 5 and Feb 10 to be supplied to the parties. Case management is fixed for May 14, via Zoom," he said before adjourning the proceedings.
Earlier, lawyer M. Athimulan applied to retrieve the CRT on the basis that there were allegations that the defence had not submitted any mitigation regarding the sentencing of Mohd Isa.
Athimulan said this was incorrect, claiming the defence was never invited to do so.
"I must address the prosecution's narrative here, where the deputy public prosecutor said that we were extended an invitation to submit mitigation.
"There was no such invitation or specific direction from the panel. The CRT would help us in answering the allegation," Athimulan said.
Meanwhile, deputy public prosecutor Afzainizam Abdul Aziz told the court that the prosecution had requested the CRT in the previous proceedings, but the request was rejected by the Federal Court panel presiding over the matter at the time.
"Parties were instructed to answer issues that were raised through affidavit, and the applicant also answered the issue through affidavit-in-reply. The space and opportunity to do so have been given fully," Afzainizam said.
The Federal Court was initially scheduled to hear Mohd Isa's review application of the previous panel's decision convicting him.
On Feb 10, the former Negri Sembilan mentri besar was jailed by the Federal Court over nine counts of graft.
A three-judge Federal Court panel unanimously set aside the Court of Appeal decision acquitting Mohd Isa.
The Federal Court said the High Court's conviction of Mohd Isa on nine charges was "correct and safe" and restored the six-year jail term and RM15.45mil fine imposed by the Kuala Lumpur High Court.
The politician was charged in 2018 with nine counts of dishonestly receiving RM3.09mil in bribes from Ikhwan Zaidel, then a director of Gegasan Abadi Properties Sdn Bhd, via his former special officer Muhammad Zahid Md Arip.
The payment was made as an inducement for approving the purchase of the Merdeka Palace Hotel & Suites in Kuching, Sarawak, by Felda Investment Corporation Sdn Bhd for RM160mil.
On Feb 3, 2021, the High Court found Mohd Isa guilty and imposed the sentence.
On March 6, 2024, Mohd Isa became a free man after a three-judge panel of the
The Court of Appeal unanimously set aside his conviction and sentence.
The prosecution then filed an appeal to set aside the Court of Appeal's decision.
Mohd Isa filed the application to review the Federal Court's decision on March 4.
