KUALA LUMPUR: The Sessions Court here today set seven days, starting April 9 next year, for Kinabatangan member of Parliament Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin and his wife Datin Seri Zizie Izette Abdul Samad to present their defence against three corruption charges involving RM2.8 million.
Judge Rosli Ahmad fixed the trial dates for April 9 to 11, April 14 and 15, and May 5 and 6, 2025.
"The court also set Jan 21 for case management," he said, while maintaining the RM100,000 bail with one surety for each accused and, along with the additional condition that both of them surrender their passports to the court.
Rosli is the new judge who will preside over the case against the couple, following the transfer of the previous judge, Rozina Ayob.
Earlier, deputy public prosecutor Law Chin How requested that the court set a trial date and uphold the RM100,000 bail, with the additional condition that the Bung Moktar and Zizie Izette's passports be surrendered to the court.
"Today is set for the mention of the case following the Court of Appeal's decision on Nov 18, which remitted the case back to the Sessions Court," said Law, who handled the case alongside DPPs Mohamad Fadly Mohd Zamry and Maziah Mohaide.
Lawyers Datuk Seri K. Kumaraendran, A. Ashok, and Ridha Abdah Subri, representing Bung Moktar and Zizie Izette, told the court that five to six witnesses, including the husband and wife, would be called to testify.
On Nov 18, the Court of Appeal ordered Bung Moktar Radin and Zizie Izette to enter their defence on three corruption charges involving RM2.8 million after allowing the prosecution's appeal against the couple's acquittal by the Kuala Lumpur High Court on Sept 7, 2023.
On Sept 2 2022, Rozina ordered Bung Moktar and Zizie Izette to enter their defence on all three corruption charges after finding that the prosecution had established a prima facie case against them at the end of the prosecution case.
Bung Moktar, 65, who was then the non-executive chairman of Felcra Berhad, was charged on May 3, 2019, with two charges of accepting bribes of RM2.2 million and RM262,500 as an inducement to obtain Felcra approval to invest RM150 million in Public Mutual unit trusts.
He was alleged to have accepted bribes from Public Mutual Berhad's investment agent Madhi Abdul Hamid through Zizie Izette, 46, at Public Bank Taman Melawati Branch here between 12.30pm and 5pm on June 12, 2015.
Bung Moktar was also charged with receiving RM337,500 in cash from Unit Amanah consultant, Norhaili Ahmad Mokhtar, under the name of Zizie Izette for the same reason and place on June 19, 2015, while Zizie Izette was charged with three counts of abetting her husband over the matter at the same place, date and time.– BERNAMA