KUALA LUMPUR: The Attorney-General's Chambers (AGC) has yet to decide on the representation letter sent by Datuk Seri Dr Zahid Hamidi over his corruption trial involving funds belonging to Yayasan Akal Budi (YAB).
Deputy Public Prosecutor Mohd Dusuki Mokhtar told Court of Appeal judge Datuk Collin Lawrence Sequerah, presiding as a High Court judge, that the AGC needed more time to review the matter.
The trial, therefore, continues with the sixth defence witness, Datuk Mohd Kamal Abdullah who is Zahid's special officer, today.
It was previously reported that Zahid, earlier this year, submitted a 200-page long representation letter to the AGC, seeking for his charges to be dropped due to new evidence in the case.
On Jan 24, last year, Zahid was ordered to enter his defence against all 47 corruption charges after the court ruled that the prosecution had established a prima facie case against him on all 12 criminal breach of trust (CBT), eight corruption and 27 money laundering charges.
The 68-year old Umno president had pleaded not guilty to all.
For the CBT charges, Zahid was alleged to have used the funds to make six payments for his personal credit card usage, insurance policy and licence for his personal vehicles, remittances to a law firm and contributions to the Royal Malaysia Police Football Association.
The offences were allegedly committed at the Affin Bank Bhd branch in Jalan Bunus, off Jalan Masjid India, here, between Jan 13, 2014 and Dec 23, 2016.
The charges, under Section 409 of the Penal Code, provide for a jail term of between two and 20 years, and with whipping and a fine, upon conviction.
Zahid was also charged with eight counts of bribery, where he is alleged to have accepted bribes from three companies, namely Mastoro Kenny IT Consultant & Services, Data Sonic Group Bhd and Profound Radiance Sdn Bhd, as an inducement for him, in his capacity as the then home minister, to help the companies to obtain MyEG projects, supply passport chips and to be appointed the operator of the migrant visa one-stop centres in Pakistan and Nepal, respectively.
He was charged with committing the offences, framed under Section 16(a)(B) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act 2009, at the Maybank branch at Dataran Maybank on Jalan Maarof, Bangsar here between July 15, 2016 and March 15, 2018.
The Bagan Datuk member of parliament also faces 27 charges of money laundering by engaging in direct transactions involving income from illegal activities between March 29, 2016 and April 11, 2018.
All the offences were allegedly committed at the Malayan Banking Bhd Dataran Maybank branch on Jalan Maarof, Bangsar, and Marhaba Enterprise Sdn Bhd on Jalan Bukit Bintang here between March 29, 2016 and April 11, 2018.
The charge carries a maximum of 20 years' jail, whipping and a fine.
