THE hearing of an application by former Sabah infrastructure development minister Peter Anthony to stay his conviction for falsifying a letter on contract work at Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) has been postponed to July 28.

Deputy public prosecutor Haresh Prakash Somiah told reporters that the postponement was due to Sessions Court Judge Azura Alwi going on emergency leave today.

Anthony filed the application pending his appeal to the High Court, on the grounds that he will contest in the next general election and the conviction would jeopardise his nomination.

On May 26, the Sessions Court sentenced Anthony to three years imprisonment and a fine of RM50,000 after he was found guilty of forging a letter for a mechanical and electrical systems maintenance contract at UMS.

Judge Azura also ordered Anthony, 51, to serve a 15-month prison sentence in lieu of failure to pay the fine.

However, she also allowed a stay of execution of the prison sentence pending his appeal, but ordered the RM50,000 fine to be paid on that day.

Anthony was charged in his capacity as managing director of Syarikat Asli Jati Sdn Bhd with forging a letter from the office of UMS deputy vice-chancellor – dated June 9, 2014 – by inserting a false statement with the intention of using it for fraudulent purposes.

The offence was committed at the office of the Prime Minister’s principal private secretary at the Perdana Putra building in Putrajaya, sometime between June 13 and August 21, 2014.

The charge was framed under section 468 of the penal code. – Bernama, July 18, 2022.