RM1 mln graft case: Court grants Ku Nan DNAA, no full acquittal

Judge Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali therefore granted the prosecution’s application for Tengku Adnan, 69, to be discharged not amounting to an acquittal (DNAA) after deputy public prosecutor Julia Ibrahim informed that the prosecution did not wish to continue with the prosecution at this stage under Section 254 (1) of the Criminal Procedure Code (CPC).

"The proceeding shall be stayed and the accused shall be discharged from the same. Under Section 254 (3) of the CPC, such discharge shall not amount to an acquittal unless the court so direct based on case law. The question, however, is whether there are good grounds for the discharge not to amount to an acquittal.

"Having heard the submissions, in my view the reasons submitted by the learned deputy public prosecutor of a new development and the need to investigate the same is the basis that justifies this court not to order a full acquittal in accordance with Section 254 (3) of the CPC. As such, I order the accused be granted a discharge not amounting to an acquittal," the judge said.

Earlier, Julia said that today should have been fixed for the prosecution's second witness, assistant registrar of the Companies Commission of Malaysia (SSM), Muhamad Akmaludin Abdullah to be cross-examined by the defence.

However, Julia said she had received a directive to seek an order for a discharge not amounting to an acquittal on Tengku Adnan under Section 254 (1) pf the CPC and the prosecution at this stage was not continuing the case against the accused.

“There is a new development which needs to be investigated further. The prosecution also does not want to waste the court’s time as we do not know the time needed to investigate this latest development.

"We cannot divulge the details. What can be told is that there is a complaint made to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) on a witness in this case.

“Therefore, the prosecution seeks an order for the accused to be discharged not amounting to an acquittal of the charge," said Julia, adding that whether the prosecution wished to continue with this charge or make another charge would be determined after completion of the further investigation.

She said the prosecution also had the power to stop the proceeding and this would not be prejudicial or ill-intended against the accused.

"The prosecution also has no problem to inform the defence if they wish to know about the status of the investigation, whether it should continue or end," she added.

Meanwhile, Tengku Adnan's lawyer Datuk Tan Hock Chuan had requested for his client to be given a full acquittal, saying it would be unfair if a DNAA were to be granted.

"My client was arrested on Nov 14, 2018 and he was first charged in the Sessions Court on Nov 15, the same year. The charge has been hanging over his head for almost two years.

"The prosecution did not give a clear time frame of how long more they need to investigate this new development," the lawyer said.

Tan also said that the court could follow the high-profile corruption cases where acquittals were granted in the case of former Sabah Chief Minister, Tan Sri Musa Aman and former Finance Minister, Lim Guan Eng (bungalow case).

"I humbly pray for the court to give a full acquittal to my client," the lawyer added.

The Putrajaya Member of Parliament was 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 with regard to a development project on Lot 228, Jalan Semarak, Kuala Lumpur.

Tengku Adnan also faced 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 began on Sept 20, last year with the prosecution calling two witnesses to testify.

However, Tengku Adnan 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’s 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 before Justice Mohd Nazlan.

Tengku Adnan was also charged with 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 the decision.