KUALA LUMPUR – The prosecution in Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s trial involving Yayasan Akalbudi funds today amended a money-laundering charge by making changes to the amount and value of cheques.
“I understand this (amended) charge is to make the sentence heftier for me. Thank you… I plead not guilty,” said the former deputy prime minister.
He entered his plea after the amended charge was read out before high court judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah prior to the start of proceedings.
Earlier, deputy public prosecutor Harris Ong Mohd Jeffry Ong applied to the court to amend the 27th charge in terms of the cheques’ value and amount, and the judge ordered the amended charge to be read out to Zahid.
The amendment involves the removal of the amount “RM6,885,300.20” and “30 cheques”, and replacing them with “RM7,511,250.20” and “35 cheques”.
According to the amended charge, the 68-year-old accused allegedly committed the offence by being directly involved in a transaction involving proceeds from illegal activities by ordering one Omar Ali Abdullah to convert for him RM7,511,250.20 in cash into 35 cheques, which were later handed over to Messrs Lewis & Co for the purpose of opening fixed deposit accounts with Maybank.
The Bagan Datuk MP allegedly committed the offence at Marhaba Enterprise Sdn Bhd in Jalan Bukit Bintang here on March 29 and July 15, 2016.
He faces 47 charges, 12 of which are for criminal breach of trust, corruption (8) and money laundering (27) involving tens of millions of ringgit belonging to Yayasan Akalbudi.
All the money-laundering charges, under Section 4(1)(a) of the Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act 2001, are punishable under Section 4(1) of the same act, which provides for imprisonment of up to 15 years and a fine of not less than five times the amount of the proceeds from unlawful activities, or RM5 million, whichever is higher, upon conviction. – Bernama, March 9, 2021
