Friday 29 Mar 2024
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KUALA LUMPUR (July 24): The High Court today fixed Nov 23 and 24 for the resumption of formal federal territories minister Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor's RM1 million graft trial.

Besides that, the trial was also fixed to proceed on Dec 1 to 3, 7 to 10 and 14 to 16.

Justice Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali today set the dates for the trial, after the Federal Court last week ruled that he would remain as the judge presiding over the trial, reversing the Court of Appeal's decision to order a change of judge.

Last Feb 12, the Court of Appeal allowed Tengku Adnan's appeal for Mohd Nazlan to recuse himself from hearing the case and for the case to be transferred to another court, with the new judge to decide whether to start the case afresh or to continue from where Mohd Nazlan had left.

The hearing before Mohd Nazlan began on Sept 20 last year with two witnesses having been called to testify. The case has been then transferred to the court before High Court judge Justice Datuk Muhammad Jamil Hussin.

The federal court, however, reversed this decision and the trial is now back in Mohd Nazlan's court.

In this case, which is Tengku Adnan's second ongoing graft trial, the former minister is accused of receiving a RM1 million bribe from property developer Datuk Tan Eng Boon.

Tan, who is also Joland Group of Companies chairman, initially claimed trial to bribing Tengku Adnan. However, last September, he pleaded guilty to the alternative charge of abetting Tengku Adnan in receiving the bribe, and was fined RM1.5 million by Justice Nazlan.

Tengku Adnan allegedly received the sum as an inducement to approve the application of Nucleus Properties Sdn Bhd (now Paragon City Development Sdn Bhd) to increase its plot ratio in the development of Lot 228 in Jalan Semarak, Kuala Lumpur.

He also faces an alternative charge in his capacity as the then federal territories minister of receiving for himself RM1 million from Tan via a Public Bank cheque belonging to Pekan Nenas Industries, which was deposited into his CIMB account, knowing that Tan, as a director of Nucleus Properties, had connections with his official duties.

The charge is framed under Section 165 of the Penal Code, which provides an imprisonment for up to two years, or with fine, or both, if found guilty.

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