GEORGE TOWN - Two men pleaded not guilty in the Sessions Court today to separate charges of fraud and using forged documents in connection with the declaration of imported cosmetic products belonging to a company.
One of the accused, Zul Akmal Ab Suhukor, 52, was charged with deceiving a 26-year-old local man, a manager at a cosmetics company, into transferring RM13,000 to the bank account of his company, First Global Freight & Logistics.
The money was purportedly intended as payment to the Customs Department to reduce the duties imposed on the imported cosmetic products. The offence was allegedly committed between August and September 2024 at an office in Menara Northam, Jalan Sultan Ahmad Shah, here.
The charge was framed under Section 415(b) of the Penal Code, punishable under Section 417 of the same Code, which provides for a jail term of up to five years, a fine, or both upon conviction.
Deputy public prosecutor Nurul Atikah Ab Rashid, who is prosecuting the case on behalf of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), offered bail of RM30,000, with the additional condition that the accused surrender his passport to the court until the disposal of the case.
However, lawyer K. Mahendran, assisted by M. Sharmila, who represented the accused, appealed for a lower bail, on the ground that his client worked as an office manager earning RM2,500 a month and had three children and a non-working wife to support.
Judge Irwan Suainbon subsequently allowed the accused bail of RM10,000 with one surety, in addition to the condition that he surrender his passport to the court.
Meanwhile, in a separate case before the same judge, Sarudin Daud, 53, also pleaded not guilty to a charge of using a forged document in connection with the declaration of the company's imported cosmetic products on Sept 12, 2024, at the same premises.
He was charged with using as genuine a forged document, namely the Declaration Form for Imported Goods dated Sept 12, 2024, in the Customs Department's Customs Information System, which contained a false declaration and resulted in the amount of tax payable being reduced from RM55,632.19 to RM25,850.15.
The charge was framed under Section 471 of the Penal Code, punishable under Section 465 of the same Code, which provides for a jail term of up to two years, a fine, or both upon conviction.
The court subsequently allowed Sarudin bail of RM10,000 and ordered him to surrender his passport after his lawyer, Mahendran, informed the court that his client worked as an executive officer earning RM1,800 a month, had three children and was the family's main breadwinner.
Both cases were fixed for mention on Dec 14. - BERNAMA