KUALA LUMPUR: Genneva Malaysia Sdn Bhd consultant Datuk Joseph Kow Hock Beng heaved a sigh of relief when the High Court today maintained his acquittal on two counts of abetting the illegal acceptance of deposits from the public.
Clad in a white shirt and slacks, Kow had a broad smile on his face after Judicial Commissioner Datuk Mohamad Shariff Abu Samah dismissed the prosecution’s appeal against the initial decision handed down by the Sessions Court.
However, he declined comment when approached by pressmen.
Shariff rejected Deputy Public Prosecutor Fatnin Yusof’s appeal as the court found there was no merit to it.
“The Sessions Court judge did not err when handing down the decision,” he said.
Fatnin was appealing to overturn a Sessions Court ruling on April 28, 2016 that acquitted and discharged Kow on two counts of abetting Genneva Malaysia in accepting deposits from the public amounting to RM5.5 billion in 2015.
Kow had been accused of accepting the deposits from the public via two CIMB Islamic Bank Bhd current accounts without a valid licence.
He had been alleged to have committed the offences in Jalan Kuchai Maju 6, Off Jalan Kuchai Lama, between Jan 10, 2011 and Oct 1, 2012.