UMNO president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s purchase of two bungalow lots in Country Heights, Kajang for RM5.9 million was made with funds given as donations, and the bungalows were used for charitable purposes, his lawyers told the Kuala Lumpur High Court today. 

Lead counsel Hisyam Teh Poh Teik said the prosecution has failed to prove that the sum was proceeds from unlawful activities.

As such, there is no prima facie case for the 26th graft charge against Zahid for using Yayasan Akalbudi’s funds for his personal use, Teh submitted to Judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah.

In the 26th charge, the former deputy prime minister is accused of money-laundering by giving instructions to purchase two bungalows for RM5.9 million using a cheque belonging to Messrs Lewis & Co, a trustee of Yayasan Akalbudi. 

The defence said that Zahid did indeed give instructions on the purchase, but that they were meant as a donation to Yayasan Al-Falah, another charity foundation that belonged to Zahid’s younger brother, Mohamad Nasaee Ahmad Tarmizi.

Teh used the evidence of the 66th prosecution witness, Faisalludin Mohamat Yusuff, who had confirmed during the trial earlier that the bungalows were a donation from Yayasan Akalbudi to Yayasan Al-Falah, as the two charity foundations shared the same objectives. 

“One such lot has been completely converted into a surau, complete with prayer hall and meeting room. The evidence of Faisalludin has also confirmed this,” the lawyer submitted. 

Zahid is the sole signatory, owner and founder of Yayasan Akalbudi. He set up the foundation in the 1990s as a limited company to carry out charity work.

Teh said sum of RM5.9 million was taken from the trust account of Lewis & Co to pay seller Lee Kim Tiong @ Lee Kim Yew, the director of Bee Garden Holdings Sdn Bhd, Teh said.

The money in the trust account came from a fixed deposit of RM2 million in a cheque belonging to Mubarak Hussain Akhtar Husin (62nd prosecution witness), owner of Seri Jaya Perkasa Sdn Bhd. 

Mubarak had also stated in his witness statement that the cheque received by Lewis & Co was his donation for a tahfiz or Islamic religious school, Teh told the court.

A second fixed deposit of RM5 million into the trust account came from seven cheques from Mastoro Kenny IT Consultant & Services.

These cheques were given by 36th prosecution witness Junaith Asharab Md Shariff, a textile wholesaler via Berani & Jujur Trading, who said in his witness statement earlier that he gave the cheques to Zahid at end of 2016 to build a mosque and tahfiz school in Zahid’s Bagan Datuk constituency, Teh added.

In earlier proceedings, the court heard from the founder of Mastoro Kenny, M. Kumaraguru M. Muthusamy (35th prosecution witness) that Junaith had sought his permission to use the company’s bank account.

Zahid is currently facing 47 charges – 12 of them involving criminal breach of trust, eight for corruption and 27 for money-laundering involving tens of millions of ringgit of funds belonging to Yayasan Akalbudi.

The trial resumes tomorrow at 9.30am. – September 13, 2021.