KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 10 — The Sessions Court has acquitted and discharged a retired Malaysian Armed Forces personnel of five counts of corruption today, in connection with the awarding of the Defence Ministry’s (Mindef) projects to a company.
Judge Suzana Hussin ordered the release of Lt Che Ahmad Idris, 58, after finding that the defence had succeeded in raising reasonable doubts against the prosecution’s case at the end of the defence case.
"The court also found that the prosecution failed to establish the case beyond reasonable doubt on all charges facing the accused. Therefore, the court acquitted and discharged the accused of all five charges and the RM95,000 bail and passport to be returned to the accused," she said.
18 prosecution witnesses and 13 defence witnesses testified in the trial, which began on August 27, 2021.
Che Ahmad was charged in his capacity as the then-head of the Strategic Cyber Warfare Branch, Defence Intelligence Staff Division, at Mindef, with soliciting and agreeing to accept RM500,000 in gratification from FEHM Entity Sdn Bhd's managing director Elias Jemadi Tajudin as an inducement to appoint the company through direct negotiation to carry out maintenance services at the division.
For the second to the fifth charges, he was alleged to have received RM130,000 from Elias Jemadi for similar purposes.
All the offences were allegedly committed at the Tun Osman Jewa Housing Complex, Ministry of Defence Malaysia, Jalan Padang Tembak, between October 2019 and April 2020.
The charges, framed under Section 16(a)(B) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act 200, provide a prison sentence of up to 20 years and a fine of not less than five times the amount or value of the bribe or RM10,000, whichever is higher upon conviction.
The prosecution was conducted by MACC Deputy Public Prosecutor Muhammad Asraf Mohamed Tahir while the accused was represented by lawyer Gooi Soon Seng.
— Bernama
