KUALA LUMPUR: Former Federal Territories Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor was today given a discharge not amounting to an acquittal (DNAA) over his RM1 million corruption case.
High Court judge Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali, in granting the DNAA, rejected the Umno politician's arguments that he should be given a full acquittal, similar to how DAP secretary-general and former Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng had been freed of a corruption case midway through his trial in 2018.
Mohd Nazlan said there were merits in the prosecution's application not to grant Tengku Adnan, 69, a full acquittal as further investigations were needed involving the case.
At the onset of the resumption of the trial this morning, deputy public prosecutor Julia Ibrahim informed the judge that she had received instructions from the Attorney General's Chambers (AGC) to seek a DNAA for Tengku Adnan.
She said there had been new developments in the case involving a witness which warranted further investigation and this left the prosecution with no choice but to apply for the DNAA.
"We don't want to waste the court's time as we don't know how long the investigation may take. That is why we received instructions to drop proceedings at this stage.
"Whether we will continue with the charge, file new charges or drop this case altogether will depend on the outcome of the investigation," she said, pointing out that only two witnesses had testified in the trial which started on Sept 20 last year.
Mohd Nazlan said in view of the reasons submitted by the DPP, the court found it justified not to grant Tengku Adnan a full acquittal.
"I therefore order the accused to be discharged not amounting to an acquittal," he ruled.
Earlier, Tengku Adnan's lawyer, Tan Hock Chuan, vehemently argued that his client should be granted a full acquittal as it wouldn't be fair for the charge to be left hanging over the accused's head indefinitely.
He said Tengku Adnan was first charged in the Sessions Court on Nov 15, 2018 and the charge has been hanging over his client's head for more than two years.
"The prosecution is now saying they need more time to investigate and they cannot even indicate how long it will take," he said, before going on to cite previous trials, including that of Lim, where the court had granted a full discharge even though the prosecution had only applied for a DNAA.
It was previously reported that Lim and businesswoman Phang Li Koon were granted a full discharge over their corruption charges by Penang High Court judge Datuk Hadhariah Syed Ismail, even though the prosecution had only applied for a DNAA.
Lim had then claimed trial to using his position as a public officer, namely, the then Chief Minister of Penang, to gain gratification for himself and his wife, Betty Chew Gek Cheng.
He was accused of doing so by approving the application for conversion of agriculture land to a public housing zone in the southwest district to a company, Magnificient Emblem Sdn Bhd.
In the second charge, Lim also claimed trial to using his position to obtain for himself a plot of land and a house, located at No 25, Jalan Pinhorn, George Town, from Phang for RM2.8 million, a price which he allegedly knew did not commensurate with the property's then market value of RM4.27 million.
Phang was charged with abetting Lim in obtaining the bungalow at an undervalued cost at the same place and date.
Tengku Adnan, meanwhile, was charged with receiving RM1 million from businessman Tan Eng Boon to approve an application by Nucleus Properties Sdn Bhd (now known as Paragon City Development Sdn Bhd) to increase the industrial plot ratio of a piece of land on Jalan Semarak.
The offence was said to have taken place at the Putra World Trade Centre (PWTC) CIMB branch on Dec 27, 2013.
The charge against Tengku Adnan was under Section 24(1) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act.
If convicted, he could have been jailed up to 20 years and fined five times the gratification amount received.
Previously, the court fined Tan RM1.5 million for bribing Tengku Adnan over an alternative charge for allegedly abetting Tengku Adnan under Section 165 of the Penal Code, which carries a two-year jail term, a fine or both upon conviction.