Prosecution’s appeal against acquittal of Bung, wife in limbo

The prosecution is appealing the High Court’s acquittal of Kinabatangan MP Bung Moktar Radin and wife Zizie Izette Samad of corruption and abetment charges made by way of a revision application.

PUTRAJAYA: The prosecution’s appeal against the acquittal of Kinabatangan MP Bung Moktar Radin and his wife, Zizie Izette Samad, from corruption charges involving a RM150 million Felcra investment has been stalled as the High Court has yet to issue its written judgment.

As a result, the Court of Appeal today fixed the appeal for further case management on March 22, the fifth adjournment since September.

Lawyer Teh See Khoon, representing Bung and Zizie, confirmed the matter after the parties appeared before deputy registrar Khairi Haron to inform him that the appeal records, which must include the High Court judge’s written grounds, are not ready.

Deputy public prosecutor Fadly Zamry appeared for the prosecution.

According to a long-standing court practice, judges are to provide their written grounds within eight weeks after a notice of appeal has been filed.

Without the judgment, the prosecution is unable to prepare and file its petition of appeal to state where the High Court had erred in its findings.

The prosecution filed its notice of appeal on Sept 19, after Justice Azhar Abdul Hamid allowed the couple’s Sept 7 application to exercise his revisionary powers.

Lawyer Navpreet Singh said the parties could urge the Court of Appeal to proceed with the appeal even in the absence of the written grounds of judgment from the High Court.

Navpreet said the prosecution could also write to the managing judge of the High Court’s criminal division to request that the judgment be expedited.

In his oral verdict, Azhar said the sessions court judge’s decision calling for Bung and Zizie to enter their defence amounted to a miscarriage of justice.

“After examining the records, this court finds there was no evidence that P24 and P25 (prosecution witnesses Madhi Abdul Hamid and Norhaili Mokhtar) had given money to (Bung) through his wife (Zizie),” said Azhar.

Bung, 65, was charged with two counts of receiving bribes amounting to RM2.2 million and RM262,500 as gratification to obtain Felcra’s approval to make a RM150 million investment in Public Mutual’s unit trust.

He was accused of receiving bribes from Madhi, a Public Mutual investment agent, through Zizie, at Public Bank’s Taman Melawati branch in Kuala Lumpur between 12.30pm and 5pm on June 12, 2015.

He was also charged with receiving a bribe of RM337,500 from Norhaili, another Public Mutual investment agent, under Zizie’s name at the same location on June 19, 2015.

Zizie, 44, faced three charges of abetting Bung in the alleged offences.