Muhyiddin pleads not guilty to abuse of power, money laundering worth RM427.5 mil
10 Mar 2023 09:37am
Muhyiddin Yassin
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"I plead not guilty and I claim trial," said the Bersatu president after the charges were read before Judges Azura Alwi and Suzana Hussain. Muhyiddin is the second former prime minister after Datuk Seri Najib Razak to be accused of charges under the provisions of the same section in the court.
According to the first to fourth charges, the Pagoh MP is charged as an official of public body, namely the Prime Minister and Bersatu president to have used his position to accept bribery amounting to RM232.5 million from an individual namely Azman Yusoff, 51 and three companies, Bukhary Equity Sdn Bhd, Nepturis Sdn Bhd and Mamfor Sdn Bhd, for the party's allies.
The offence was allegedly committed at the Prime Minister's Office, Bangunan Perdana Putra between March 1, 2020 and August 20, 2021.
All charges are made in accordance with Section 23(1) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act 2009 which can be punished under Section 24(1) of the same act.
The section provides for a prison sentence of not more than 20 years and a fine of not less than five times the value of the bribe that is the subject of the offence if it is assessable or in the form of money, or RM10,000 whichever is higher, if convicted.
For the other two charges, Muhyiddin, as the party's President, is alleged to have received proceeds from illegal activities, namely money amounting to RM195 million from Bukhary Equity, which was deposited into Bersatu's CIMB Bank account.
The offences werer allegedly committed at CIMB Bank Menara Kuala Lumpur Branch between Feb 25, 2021 and July 8, 2022.
Both charges are made in accordance with Section 4(1)(b) read together with Section 87(1) of the Anti-Money Laundering and Anti-Terrorism Financing Act 2001 (AMLATFPUAA) which is punishable under Section 4(1) of the same act.
This section carries a prison sentence of up to 15 years and can also be fined not less than five times the amount or value of the proceeds of the illegal activity or the equipment of the offense at the time the offense was committed or RM5 million, whichever is higher, if convicted.
The prosecution was conducted by Solicitor General Datuk Ahmad Terrirudin Mohd Salleh and Deputy Public Prosecutors Datuk Faridz Gohim Abdullah, Datuk Wan Shaharuddin Wan Ladin and Ahmad Akram Grarib.
Muhyiddin was represented by lawyers, Datuk K Kumaraendran, Datuk Rosli Dahlan and Datuk Takiyuddin Hassan.
During the proceedings, Ahmad Terrirudin proposed that the accused be granted bail of RM2 million with two local sureties who are not family members of the accused.
"We also suggest that the accused hand over his passport to the court until this case is over," he said.
Meanwhile, Kumaraendran said the defence team did not object to the bail amount and the conditions.
Azura allowed the accused to be released on bail as suggested by the prosecution.
The court set May 26 for mention.
