Corruption trial of Bung Moktar, Zizie Ezette postponed to Feb 2

KUALA LUMPUR: The corruption trial of Kinabatangan MP Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin and his wife, Datin Seri Zizie A.Samad, has been postponed following the implementation of the Movement Control Order (MCO) in several states for two weeks, beginning tomorrow.

Judge Rozina Ayob adjourned the trial which had summoned 10 prosecution witnesses to testify, and fixed Feb 2 for the trial to resume.

“If the MCO is not extended further, you are required to turn up in court on Feb 2. Otherwise, I have to wait for instructions from the Chief Registrar of Courts, subject for further notice,” she said.

In the next hearing, the 11th prosecution witness, namely senior manager of Administration and Finance at Yayasan Felcra, Azriman Ridouan, 44, will be called to testify.

Deputy public prosecutors Datuk Faridz Gohim Abdullah, Mohd Sophian Zakaria, Siti Noor Hafizan Zakaria, Maziah Mohaide and Abdul Rashid Sulaiman appeared for the prosecution while Bung Moktar and his wife were represented by lawyers Datuk K. Kumaraendran, M. Athimulan, Ridha Abdah Subri and Ahmad Adha Amir Yasser.

The court had previously set the trial for this week to run from yesterday to Friday

Yesterday, Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, in his special address on COVID-19 said the government has decided to implement the MCO in six states - Penang, Selangor, Federal Territories (Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and Labuan), Melaka, Johor and Sabah - for 14 days, from Wednesday until Jan 26.

On May 3, 2019, Bung Moktar, 61, who is also Sabah Deputy Chief Minister pleaded not guilty to two counts of receiving bribes of RM2.2 million and RM262,500 for obtaining approval for Felcra to make a RM150 million investment in unit trust products of Public Mutual.

Bung Moktar, who was then the Felcra non-executive chairman, was accused of taking the bribes from Public Mutual's investment agent Madhi Abdul Hamid, 38, through his wife Zizie Ezette, at the Taman Melawati branch of Public Bank here, at between 12.30pm and 5pm on June 12, 2015.

He also claimed trial to the charge of taking for himself a bribe of RM335,500 from another Public Mutual investment agent, Norhaili Ahmad Mokhtar, 42, under the name of Zizie Ezette, for the same purpose.

The offence was allegedly committed at the same location on June 19, 2015.

Zizie Ezette also pleaded not guilty to the three charges of abetting her husband on the same matter at the same place, date and time.

-- BERNAMA