KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi's corruption trial involving misappropriating Yayasan Akal Budi (YAB) funds has been postponed to tomorrow.
Zahid's lawyer Datuk Hisyam Teh Pok Teik confirmed the adjournment to the media who had been waiting for two hours at the courthouse this morning.
The trial, which was scheduled to proceed on August 1 to 3 this week, was scheduled to start at 9am today.
Hisyam, however, said that the adjournment was requested in the Judge's Chambers this morning and Court of Appeal judge Datuk Collin Lawrence Sequerah, who presided over the case as the High Court judge granted the application right away.
Hisyam said the adjournment was requested as Zahid had to attend a cabinet meeting this morning.
He also confirmed that the trial will resume tomorrow with the seventh defence witness Datuk Rosiah Osman on the stand.
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 70-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 for accepting bribes from three companies, Mastoro Kenny IT Consultant & Services, Data Sonic Group Bhd, and Profound Radiance Sdn Bhd, to help them obtain MyEG projects, supply passport chips, and operate the migrant visa one-stop centres in Pakistan and Nepal.
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.
