Ku Nan's RM1 mln corruption trial to resume on Dec 7

KUALA LUMPUR: The RM1 million corruption trial of former Federal Territories Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor will continue on Dec 7 before High Court judge Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali.

Deputy Registrar of the High Court Mahyuddin Mohmad Som when contacted said the trial which was supposed to resume today has been vacated following the Conditional Movement Control Order being extended from Nov 9 to Dec 6.

“The court has vacated the dates which was set earlier due the CMCO. However, the court maintain the dates in December and set Dec 7 to 10 and Dec 14 until 16 to continue the trial,” he said adding that the court had informed the parties on the matter via an email on Nov 13.

The 69-year-old Putrajaya Member of Parliament is charged with corruptly receiving for himself RM1 million from businessman Datuk Tan Eng Boon, who had pleaded guilty to an alternative charge of abetting the politician and was fined RM1.5 million.

The money was deposited into Tengku Adnan’s CIMB Bank account as an inducement to assist the application by Nucleus Properties Sdn Bhd to increase the company’s plot ratio in regard to a development project on Lot 228, Jalan Semarak, Kuala Lumpur.

Tengku Adnan also faces an alternative charge, in his capacity as federal territories minister, of receiving for himself RM1 million from Tan via a Public Bank cheque belonging to Pekan Nenas Industries Sdn Bhd which was deposited into his CIMB account, knowing that Tan, as a director of Nucleus Properties, had connections with his official duties.

The trial before Justice Mohd Nazlan had begun on Sept 20 last year with the prosecution had called two witnesses to testify.

However, Tengku Adnan had filed an application to recuse Justice Mohd Nazlan from hearing the case on grounds that the judge had read and considered the facts of the case of Tan.

Justice Mohd Nazlan dismissed Tengku Adnan's application prompting him to file an appeal to the Court of Appeal.

The Court of Appeal in February this year ruled in favour of Tengku Adnan and ordered the trial to be heard before another judge on grounds that Justice Mohd Nazlan might be biased.

On July 17, 2020 a three-member bench of the Federal Court, reversed the Court of Appeal order for Justice Mohd Nazlan's recusal to hear the trial and for the trial to be heard before another judge. The case therefore was remitted back before Justice Mohd Nazlan.

Tengku Adnan was also charged of having received for himself a total of RM2 million from a businessman, Tan Sri Chai Kin Kong who is Aset Kayamas Sdn Bhd (AKSB) director and the trial before High Court Judge Mohamed Zaini Mazlan had completed and the court fixed Dec 21 for decision.

-- BERNAMA