Court allows Muhammad Shafee to amend date of release for passport to Australia

KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court here today allowed an application by lawyer Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, who is facing charges for money laundering, to amend the date for the temporary release of his passport for his travel to Australia for a meeting with a King's Counsel from the United Kingdom.

Muhammad Shafee applied to amend the date, which was initially from Sept 6 to Sept 12, to Sept 15 to Sept 19, 2022.

Judge Datuk Muhammad Jamil Hussin allowed Muhammad Shafee's application after deputy public prosecutor Afzainizam Abdul Aziz did not object to it.

Earlier, lawyer Wee Yeong Kang, representing Muhammad Shafee, said his client requested to amend the dates as he (Muhammad Shafee) had to postpone his travel.

This is because the King's counsel, Geoffrey Robertson, needs time to study the documents first before he can give any advice or recommendation to Muhammad Shafee, he said, adding that his client would return the passport to the court on Sept 22.

Muhammad Shafee, who was the lead counsel in former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak's cases relating to SRC International Sdn Bhd and 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), had been allowed to travel abroad on several occasions after he was charged in court.

The 70-year-old lawyer surrendered his passport to the court in September 2018 after he was charged with two counts of receiving money amounting to RM9.5 million, allegedly from illegal activities, through two cheques issued by Najib which were deposited into his CIMB Bank Berhad account.

He is also facing two charges of engaging in transactions resulting from illegal activities, namely submitting incorrect tax returns and in violation of Paragraph 113(1)(a) of the Income Tax Act 1967 for the financial years ending Dec 31, 2013, and Dec 31, 2014.

On May 12, the prosecution closed the case after calling eight witnesses. The oral submission has been fixed for this Sept 15.

-- BERNAMA