KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 20 — Former Sabah infrastructure Development Minister Datuk Peter Anthony, who is charged with using false documents, has applied to transfer his case from the Sessions Court here to the Kota Kinabalu Sessions Court on grounds that some of the witnesses in the case are in Sabah.

In the application filed last January 6, he also stated another reason, being that he had also been charged with five other charges in the Kota Kinabalu Special Corruption Court and his movement from Kota Kinabalu to Kuala Lumpur was limited.

"I am also the Melalap State Assemblyman and have been in Sabah since the implementation of the conditional movement control order by the government, and am also serving the community in Sabah which has been severely affected since Covid-19 hit the country,” he said.

According to Peter, the movement control order implemented by the government would make it difficult for all parties involved in the case as the order would change depending on the Covid-19 situation in the country.

"This application will be of convenience to all parties since the potential witnesses to be called in this case are from and reside in Sabah,” he said.

Lawyer Mohamed Haniff Khatri Abdulla, representing Peter, when contacted by reporters, confirmed the matter.

Meanwhile, deputy public prosecutor Wan Shaharuddin Wan Ladin, when confirming Peter’s application to transfer the case to the Kota Kinabalu Sessions Court, when contacted, said the court had set today for mention of the application before Judicial Commissioner Datuk Aslam Zainuddin, but it had to be postponed to Feb 3 following implementation of the movement control order (MCO).

"However, the prosecution in the previous proceedings had told the court that the offence was committed in Peninsular Malaysia and the court here has no jurisdiction to transfer the case to Sabah,” he said.

Peter, 50, was charged as the managing director of Asli Jati Engineering Sdn Bhd with falsifying a document,  namely a letter from the Office of Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) Vice-Chancellor, dated July 11, 2014,  with regard to a purported collaboration with UMS to fund and set up an M&E technical training centre via direct negotiation in July 2014.

The offence, under Section 468 of the Penal Code, was allegedly committed at the Office of the Principal Private Secretary to the Prime Minister at the Federal Government Administrative Centre, Putrajaya, on July 17, 2014.

He faced a jail term of up to five years or a fine or both, if convicted.

Peter was also charged with an alternative charge with using false documents as genuine to finance and set up an M&E centre at the same place and date, under Section 471 of the Penal Code.

In June last year, the Warisan vice-president was also charged with RM8.75 million money laundering and abetting criminal breach of trust (CBT) of over RM15 million in cases filed at the Kota Kinabalu Sessions Court, in connection with the Rubber Industry Smallholders Development Authority (Risda) land deal. — Bernama