COURT OF APPEAL SETS MAY 22 TO HEAR BUNG MOKTAR, WIFE’S REVIEW BID ON GRAFT CASE

PUTRAJAYA, April 11 (Bernama) -- The Court of Appeal has fixed May 22 to hear Kinabatangan Member of Parliament Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin and his wife Datin Seri Zizie Izette Abdul Samad’s application to obtain leave to review a ruling requiring them to enter their defence on three corruption charges involving RM2.8 million.

The date was set during a case management session before deputy registrar Nurul Nadia Azman today, who also fixed a final case management on May 8.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Law Chin How confirmed the hearing date when contacted by Bernama.

Bung Moktar and Zizie Izette filed the application in March this year under Rule 105 of the Rules of the Court of Appeal 1994, contending that the previous Court of Appeal panel lacked jurisdiction to hear the prosecution’s appeal and wants the review panel to reinstate the High Court ruling.

On November 18 last year, the Court of Appeal panel led by Justice Datuk Ahmad Zaidi Ibrahim allowed the prosecution’s appeal and overturned the High Court’s decision that had previously acquitted them, ordering both to enter their defence.

In September 2022, the Sessions Court ordered the couple to enter their defence. The couple  succeeded in overturning the ruling through revision applications they had filed at the High Court. This prompted the prosecution to appeal to the Court of Appeal.

Bung Moktar, 65, who was then the non-executive chairman of Felcra Berhad, was charged on May 3, 2019, with two charges of accepting bribes of RM2.2 million and RM262,500 as an inducement to obtain Felcra approval to invest RM150 million in Public Mutual unit trusts.

He was alleged to have accepted the bribes from Public Mutual Berhad’s investment agent Madhi Abdul Hamid through Zizie Izette, 46, at Public Bank Taman Melawati Branch, Kuala Lumpur between 12.30 pm and 5 pm on June 12, 2015.

Bung Moktar was also charged with receiving RM337,500 in cash from Unit Amanah consultant, Norhaili Ahmad Mokhtar, under the name of Zizie Izette for the same reason and place on June 19, 2015, while Zizie Izette was charged with three counts of abetting her husband over the matter at the same place, date and time.

On Wednesday (April 9, this year), the Sessions Court allowed the couple’s application to stay the defence proceeding pending the outcome of the review application.

— BERNAMA