KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 30 — After the unexpected change in government following the 14th general election, a slew of senior politicians and their family members were prosecuted on charges ranging from corruption to money laundering and abuse.
While some have come to or are nearing their conclusion, others remain at various stages before the courts.
With the 15th general election rumoured to be around the corner, Malay Mail has compiled a list of high-profile cases that have taken place over the last four years and their current status.
Convicted
1. Datuk Seri Najib Razak (SRC International case)
The former prime minister was charged on July 4, 2018 and August 8, 2018 at the Sessions Court with a total of seven charges over the misappropriation of RM42 million sum from SRC International Sdn Bhd.
Najib’s SRC trial began on April 3, 2019 at the High Court and a year later, he was found guilty of all charges by the High Court on July 28. He was given a RM210 million fine and sentenced to 12 years’ in prison as punishment.
He appealed this but ultimately failed when the Federal Court on August 23 upheld his conviction.
Najib is serving his 12-years jail sentence at Kajang Prison, but has sought a royal pardon and a review of the Federal Court’s decision.
2. Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor (solar project bribery case)
Rosmah, who is Najib’s wife, was charged on November 15, 2018 and April 10, 2019 at the Sessions Court with soliciting and accepting bribes amounting to RM194 million in return for assisting in a RM1.25 billion government contract to supply energy to rural schools in Sarawak.
Her trial formally started on February 5, 2020 at the High Court. On February 18, 2021, the High Court ordered her to enter her defence on all three charges.
The High Court subsequently found her guilty of all three charges and was given 10 years’ imprisonment and a record fine of RM970 million as punishment for the offences on September 1, 2022.
She is currently appealing her conviction and sentence.
3. Tan Sri Mohd Isa Abdul Samad
A former Negri Sembilan mentri besar, Mohd Isa was charged in December 2018 with nine counts of receiving over RM3 million in gratification and one count of criminal breach of trust relating to the purchase of the Merdeka Palace Hotel & Suites (MPHS) in Kuching, Sarawak.
The ex-Felda chairman was acquitted of the CBT charge in June 2020 at the end of the prosecution’s case, but ordered to enter his defence to the nine corruption charges by the High Court.
On February 3, 2021, Mohd Isa was found guilty of the nine aforementioned corruption charges with the court later sentencing him to six years jail and a fine of RM15.45 million.
He is currently appealing his conviction and sentencing.
Acquitted
3. Tan Sri Musa Aman
Musa, a former Sabah chief minister, was charged with 35 counts of corruption and 16 counts of money laundering in November 2018 and March 2019, respectively.
The corruption charges alleged that Musa in his capacity as Sabah chief minister and chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Sabah Foundation had received US$50.1 million from eight logging concessionaires as an inducement to approve logging concessions for 16 companies.
Separately, the money laundering charges related to US$37.8 million and US$2.5 million in proceeds from illegal activities from several individuals he allegedly received.
However, five of the 35 counts of bribery charges were withdrawn by the prosecution in October 2019.
On June 9, 2020, the prosecution withdrew all criminal charges levelled against Musa, with the High Court acquitting on all charges before trial even began.
Attorney General Tan Sri Idrus Harun would later explain that the lack of documents from Hong Kong-based banks and the unavailability of some witnesses meant that proceeding with a trial would be untenable.
4. Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi (foreign visa system case)
Ahmad Zahid was first charged in June 2019 with 33 counts of receiving bribes amounting to S$13.56 million from Ultra Kirana Sdn Bhd as inducement for himself in his capacity as a civil servant and the then home minister to extend the company’s contract to operate One Stop Centres and integrated visa system.
He was also charged with another seven counts of obtaining gratification in various currencies from the same company for himself in connection with his official work.
Despite the numerous charges, Ahmad Zahid’s trial proper only started two years later, on May 24, 2021.
On September 23 this year, the High Court acquitted Ahmad Zahid from all 40 charges after finding that the prosecution failed to show prima facie against the Bagan Datuk MP.
Trial judge Datuk Mohd Yazid Mustafa ruled that the prosecution’s case lacked the main ingredients of the charges framed under Section 165 of the Penal Code and Section 16(a)(B) of the MACC Act levelled against Ahmad Zahid.
The prosecution is currently appealing Ahmad Zahid’s acquittal.
5. Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Mansor
Tengku Adnan was charged with corruptly receiving a total of RM3 million from property developers during his time as the federal territories minister on November 16, 2018.
His trial formally started on November 18, 2019 at the High Court. On October 14, 2019 the High Court ordered him to enter his defence on the bribery charges.
However, the High Court granted him a discharge not amounting to an acquittal in his corruption trial over a RM1 million bribe, following an appeal for the order by prosecutors on December 7, 2020.
On December 21 the same year, the High Court found Tengku Adnan guilty and sentenced him to 12 months’ prison and a RM2 million fine in his other corruption trial involving a RM2 million bribe.
However, on July 16, 2021, the Court of Appeal set aside his conviction and sentence, acquitting him after a 2-1 majority decision.
On November 16 the same year, the prosecution withdrew its challenge against the Court of Appeal’s decision to acquit Tengku Adnan.
6. Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan
Ahmad, who is also Umno secretary-general, was charged with one count of money laundering by failing to declare to the Inland Revenue Board (IRB) RM2 million he received from Najib, at the Sessions Court on January 21, 2020.
The former deputy finance minister was also charged with giving false statements to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).
On September 21, 2021, the High Court acquitted and discharged Ahmad Maslan with the prosecution withdrawing the charges after he paid RM1.1 million to compound the offence.
Conditionally discharged
7. Datuk Seri Abdul Azeez Abdul Rahim
Azeez, who is also Baling MP, was charged with three counts of accepting bribes amounting to RM5.2 million in connection with road projects in Perak and Kedah and 10 counts of money laundering involving a total of RM13.9 million which he allegedly received from a company at the Sessions Court on January 16, 2019.
He then appealed to the Court of Appeal to have the charges struck out, but only succeeded in striking out four of the money laundering charges on September 5, 2022.
However, on September 23, the Sessions Court granted him a discharge not amounting to an acquittal following a representation submitted by Abdul Azeez to the prosecution.
Ongoing
8. Datuk Seri Najib Razak
Aside from the SRC International case, Najib also has four more cases related to the 1MDB corruption scandal pending against him.
These include the main 1MDB trial, the 1MDB audit report tampering trial, the International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC) case, and one for allegedly laundering RM27 million.
The IPIC and money laundering trials have yet to start while the main 1MDB and audit tampering trials are currently before the High Court.
9. Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor (money laundering case)
Rosmah is facing 12 money laundering charges for allegedly depositing RM7,097,750 said to be derived from unlawful activities and five counts of failure to declare her income to the IRB.
However, hearing has yet to begin as she is appealing against two decisions by the High Court in dismissing her application to remove the current trial judge from presiding over the case.
10. Tan Sri Shahrir Ab Samad
Shahrir, another former Felda chairman, was charged with one count of money laundering by failing to declare RM1 million which he received from Najib to the IRB at the Sessions Court on January 21, 2020.
Shahrir’s trial before the High Court began on July 26 this year at the prosecution’s stage.
11. Lim Guan Eng
Lim, who was the finance minister during the Pakatan Harapan adminstration, was charged with using his position as Penang chief minister to receive a bribe of RM3.3 million in helping a company to obtain a construction project worth RM6,341,383,702.
The Bagan MP is also alleged to have solicited 10 per cent of the profit to be gained by the company in appreciation of obtaining the project.
Lim also faces two other charges of causing two plots of land worth RM208.8 million belonging to the Penang government to be disposed of to two companies claimed to be connected to the undersea tunnel project.
His trial began on July 13, 2021 at the Sessions Court and hearing is at the prosecution’s stage.
12. Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman
On July 22 last year, former youth and sports minister Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman was charged at the Sessions Court with a count each for misappropriating more than RM1 million as well as criminal breach of trust (CBT).
He is also charged with two counts of engaging in money-laundering activities on August 5, 2021.
His trial started on June 21, 2022 at the High Court. The prosecution rested its case on September 27.
13. Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi (Yayasan Akalbudi case)
On October 19, 2018, Ahmad Zahid was charged for the first time at the Sessions Court with 10 CBT, eight corruption, and 27 money laundering charges involving tens of millions of ringgit belonging to Yayasan Akalbudi, his family-run charity foundation.
He was later charged a second and third time for two CBTs involving the foundation on December 14, 2018 and February 20, 2019 respectively.
His trial formally started on November 18, 2019 at the High Court.
On January 24, 2022, the High Court ordered him to enter his defence on all 47 charges.
14. Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin and wife Datin Seri Zizie Izette Abdul Samad
On May 3, 2019, Bung Moktar was charged with three counts of accepting bribes totalling RM2.8 million as an inducement to obtain Felcra’s approval to invest RM150 million in Public Mutual unit trusts at the Sessions Court.
His wife, Zizie, was charged with abetting him. Their trial started on January 2, 2020.
They were then ordered to enter their defence on September 2 this year.
But the couple later filed a motion for a review of the Session Court order after the High Court granted a stay on the trial pending disposal of their application for a review of the Sessions Court order.
15. Datuk Rozman Isli
On October 14, 2021, the Parti Warisan leader was charged with one count of power abuse when he allegedly awarded a government contract to a company linked to his family members as then deputy chairman of the Labuan Port Authority board.
Rozman then sought to strike out the charge but was summarily dismissed by the High Court on August 11 this year.
His trial at the Sessions Court started on August 12 and the hearing is at the prosecution stage.
