KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 24): Former Federal Land Development Authority (Felda) chairman Tan Sri Mohd Isa Abdul Samad will know on Feb 3 next year his fate on a RM3.09 million graft charge in relation to a hotel purchase in Sarawak.

High Court Justice Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali fixed the date to give his decision on the case after hearing deputy public prosecutor Afzainizam Abdul Aziz and defence lawyer Datuk Salehuddin Saidin give their oral submissions in the case earlier this morning.

The defence had earlier closed its case on Sept 3 where a total of six defence witnesses, including Isa himself, testified in the trial, while 15 prosecution witnesses also gave evidence.

On June 16, Isa was ordered by Justice Nazlan to enter his defence on nine counts of graft charges under Section 16 of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act 2009, in relation to RM3.09 million he allegedly received from Ikhwan Zaidel, a director of Syarikat Gegasan Abadi Properties Sdn Bhd, which owned the hotel.

Syarikat Gegasan previously owned the Merdeka Palace Hotel & Suites in Kuching, but sold the property to Felda Investment Corp Sdn Bhd (FIC), a subsidiary of Felda, for RM160 million, an amount which the prosecution had contended was inflated.

During oral submissions, Isa’s lawyer Salehuddin submitted that the prosecution did not successfully prove that the money had been received by the accused. He also submitted that the accused’s former aide turned prosecution witness Muhammad Zahid Md Arip was not a reliable witness as he was the only one with knowledge of the money transfer, while the accused contended that he had no knowledge of the money.

All the offences were allegedly committed on Level 49, Menara Felda, Platinum Park, No 11, Persiaran KLCC here between July 21, 2014 and Dec 11, 2015.

If found guilty, Isa faces a maximum of 20 years in jail and a fine of up to five times the amount of bribes he received.