14 items seized from Jamal Md Yunos’ home to settle Teresa Kok lawsuit costs

KUALA LUMPUR - A total of 14 items have been seized from the home of Sungai Besar division Umno chief Datuk Seri Jamal Md Yunos in Ampang to recover an outstanding judgment sum involved in a lawsuit filed by Teresa Kok.

In a statement to the press, Kok's lawyer, Datuk Sankara Nair, said the seized items would be auctioned.

When asked what the items seized were, he said they were household items.

Earlier, a court assistant registrar and a bailiff, in the presence of lawyer G. Maniggandan from Messrs SN Nair & Partners and police officers, had arrived at Jamal's home to execute a writ of seizure and sale at about 11.42 am on Wednesday (Jan 28).

Upon arrival, the assistant registrar and the bailiff attempted to contact the occupants by calling out and ringing the doorbell, but received no response.

"Subsequently, pursuant to the court order dated Jan 23, the assistant registrar instructed that forced entry be effected.

"The writ of seizure was duly executed, and a total of 14 items were seized from the premises," Sankara said, adding that it was completed at 12.36 pm.

The enforcement arose from a final High Court judgment obtained by Kok against Jamal.

The execution of the writ of seizure and sale was to recover an outstanding judgment sum of RM66,061.85, of unpaid costs awarded to Kok.

Kok, the Seputeh MP, filed the suit on April 6, 2017, accusing Jamal of making defamatory statements about her concerning the Yayasan Warisan Anak Selangor (Yawas) funds during a press conference on March 8, 2017.

In her statement of claim, she asserted that the defamatory statements were circulated through both the print and electronic media, including on Jamal's Facebook page.

She contended that the defamatory statements implied she had misappropriated state government funds for personal gain and portrayed her as unethical.

On July 26, 2022, Kok won her case and was awarded RM300,000 by High Court Judicial Commissioner Mohd Arief Emran Arifin. Jamal was also ordered to pay RM50,000 in costs.

On March 27, 2024, the Court of Appeal dismissed Jamal’s appeal. He was also ordered to pay RM50,000 in legal costs.

On March 29, 2023, a different panel of the Court of Appeal granted Jamal's request to defer the payment of RM300,000 in damages, but ordered him to deposit the amount into the account of the law firm representing Kok pending disposal of his appeal in the Federal Court.

On July 30, 2024, the Federal Court dismissed Jamal's application for leave to appeal against the lower court's decision as it did not meet the threshold requirement for leave under Section 96 of the Courts of Judicature Act 1964.

Jamal had settled the RM300,000 payment. - THE STAR