KUALA LUMPUR – The chief registrar of the Federal Court has filed a police report against a news portal for allegedly publishing a document related to the grounds of its decision on Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s final appeal against his conviction in the SRC International corruption case.
In a statement, the registrar said the Malaysia Today portal had carried a report titled “Najib Razak’s SRC Appeal: THE JUDGEMENT”, earlier this afternoon.
It said the document posted on the portal was merely a working draft in relation to three appeals made by Najib that were leaked to the media.
The office confirmed that the working draft of the judgement that was leaked to the media was not a finalised document, the statement said.
“The finalised decision would only be presented at the open court at 4pm the same day.”
A check by The Vibes showed that the posting in question was still on the portal’s site at the time of writing.
Earlier, the Federal Court upheld Najib’s guilty verdict for all seven charges in the SRC International corruption case and will have to serve his 12-year prison sentence.
The apex court also upheld the conviction for the former prime minister to pay the RM210 million fine imposed by the high court.
A five-member bench chaired by chief justice Tun Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat said the findings of the high court were correct and the defence had failed to raise reasonable doubt.
The registrar added that the leaked document had been altered and had affected the integrity of the court’s operation, as well as the process of justice.
“An internal investigation has commenced and a police report has also been filed,” the statement said.
“This office wishes to stress that the judiciary will not be harassed by illegal and irresponsible conduct aimed at affecting the integrity of the nation’s judicial system.” – The Vibes, August 23, 2022
