KUALA LUMPUR: The attorney-general's decision to grant Hollywood producer Riza Shahriz Abdul Aziz a discharge not amounting to an acquittal (DNNA) on money laundering charges related to 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) is prudent, said lawyer Mohamed Haniff Khatri Abdulla.
"The decision balances two aspects. One, that the real criminals will and must be punished and two, Malaysia's need to recover the money from seized assets and compounds."
He said this option was not a get-out-of-jail-free card for key figures, such as fugitive businessman Low Taek Jho (Jho Low) and Riza's stepfather, former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, because besides the Anti-Money Laundering Act (AMLA) 2001, they were also charged with major offences related to misappropriating 1MDB funds.
Both have been charged with engaging in criminal activities in defrauding 1MDB.
This, along with a slew of other charges levelled against Najib, such as abuse of power and criminal breach of trust, are also non-compoundable offences.
Haniff said Riza was charged as the money entered the bank accounts of Red Granite Pictures, a production firm the latter had co-founded.
He said this meant the case had to be concluded against the main suspects of the case before an outcome could be reached for Riza's five charges under AMLA.
"The charges as they appear only mean that the loot from the (supposedly) embezzled funds had entered Red Granite's accounts.
"The prosecution most probably did not find sufficient evidence to directly link Riza to the primary offences brought against Najib or Low, besides the fact that the money ended up in the accounts.
"There was no link beyond that. In Najib and Jho Low cases, however, there are many alleged links and incidents related to 1MDB."
Haniff said as the case against Najib or the others dragged out, it was better to compound Riza and recoup some money for public spending.
He, however, said the fact that Riza was granted DNAA without paying the full compound, while its value and the terms of the duration were kept secret, was unprecedented.
Haniff said the recovered sum of US$107 million appeared to be only 40 per cent of the value of assets the Attorney-General's Chambers (A-GC) had sought to recover.
"This is why the A-GC should have issued a clear and concise statement from the beginning.
"It failed, but now even with all these controversies, it still has a duty to explain the terms of the settlement to the public."
He said the maximum compound was RM3.5 billion, based on the five charges of money laundering amounting to US$248 million brought against Riza.
Section 92 (1) of AMLA dictates that a sum not exceeding 50 per cent of the amount of the maximum fine for the offence could be specified as a written offer to the charge.
Asked whether the matter would bring international disrepute to Malaysia, he said "no", as Malaysian law provided that the accused have their share of benefits and rights.
Riza would be acquitted of the five charges once he pays off the compound and this means he cannot be re-charged based on the facts behind the compound. A case can be brought against him if any evidence on his involvement surfaces, but the charges cannot be the same as the former five.
If he fails to pay the compound, the prosecution can apply to the courts to restart the case under the same charges.
Datuk Salleh Buang, a former federal counsel at the A-GC, said in this instance, the DNAA itself was bigger than 1MDB as it lent a belief that "everything can be settled".
He said that Riza's lawyers made what was previously "impossible" possible now, and this was compounded by a growing trend of DNNAs granted in the past few years.
Sources corroborated Salleh's statement.
In 2015 there were 571 DNAAs, followed by 1,020 in 2016.
In 2017, the number dropped to 643 cases and rose to 3,215 the following year.
Last year, 2,608 DNAAs were recorded, while there have been 605 cases up to last month.
Salleh, a professor at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, said: "And this affects all types of cases, not just white-collar crimes of which 1MDB is the biggest in Malaysia's criminal history.
"It is not an impossible scenario to see Jho Low's counsel making similar representations as Riza did to the A-G to get a sweetheart deal, in the event that he gets arrested."
"But going beyond 1MDB, there are other public figures facing money-laundering charges that have nothing to do with 1MDB assets.
"Encouraged by what they see as a sweetheart deal for Riza, their counsel may make representations to the A-G (as public prosecutor) to get similar deals like Riza's."