BUTTERWORTH: Two businessmen were charged at the Sessions Court here today with soliciting and accepting bribes worth millions of ringgit to help settle excise duty issues with the Royal Malaysian Customs Department five years ago.
Chan Eng Leong and Tan Kok Siang, both 50, claimed trial to 10 charges which were read separately to them by the court interpreter before judge Zulhazmi Abdullah.
On the first count, Chan and Tan were alleged to have jointly solicited RM4 million from GTM Land and Property Sdn Bhd director Goh Choon Kim.
For the remaining nine charges, they were alleged to have accepted RM2,675,150 through nine cheques, deposited into the Maybank account of Hotspot Capital (M) Sdn Bhd, belonging to Chan.
It was allegedly an inducement to help resolve excise duty issues with the Royal Malaysian Customs Department totalling RM108 million faced by Global Tobacco Manufacturers (Int) Sdn Bhd.
Both were accused of committing the offences at a hotel in Bukit Mertajam and a bank in Queensbay Mall, Bayan Lepas on Sept 12, 2019.
The charges were framed under Section 16 (a) (A) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission Act 2009, punishable under Section 24 (1) of the same Act.
If convicted, both accused are likely to face up to 20 years' jail and a fine of not less than five times the bribe amount or RM10,000 or whichever is higher.
MACC Deputy public prosecutors Wirna Ariffin, Muhammad Taufik Awaludin and Mohd Syahzada Azad Sanusi prosecuted.
Chan was represented by counsel R.S.N. Rayer and Tan by S. Meharaj.
During proceedings, the prosecution offered bail of RM100,000 with one surety each for each of the accused for all the charges.
The accused were also required to surrender their passports to the court until the end of the case.
The court set bail at RM10,000 for each of the charge faced by the accused.
The accused were also required to fulfil three conditions — surrender their passports to the court, report themselves once a month to the nearest MACC office and to not disturb the prosecution witnesses.
The case was fixed for mention on Aug 2.