THE Kuala Lumpur High Court today set July 25 for a decision on the prosecution’s appeal against the acquittal of former Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) senior deputy director Sabudin Mohd Salleh on two charges of getting bribes amounting to RM200,000 for work permit issuance.

Judge K. Muniandy set the date after hearing submissions by deputy public prosecutor Wan Shaharuddin Wan Ladin and lawyer K. Theivaendran, who represented Sabudin.

In his submission, Wan Shaharuddin argued the trial judge was confused by the charges against Sabudin (respondent) and had blamed the prosecution for failing to establish the motive for Sabudin to solicit bribes from the prosecution’s main witness, Wong May Kuan, who is a subcontractor of Dusari Niaga.

“The trial judge committed a gross error and misdirection when he failed to consider the evidence that did not favour the respondent when deciding the respondent had given an honest testimony,” he said, before requesting the court allow the prosecution’s appeal and set aside Sabudin’s acquittal.

Theivaendran submitted the trial judge had drawn the right conclusion when acquitting his client based on witnesses’ testimonies.

The appeal was filed last year against a Sessions Court’s decision on September 15, 2022, which acquitted Sabudin, 61, of two corruption charges at the end of the defence case.

Sabudin was ordered to enter his defence on both charges after the High Court on March 24, 2022, allowed the prosecution’s appeal to set aside the December 18, 2020, decision by the Sessions Court in acquitting him of the two charges at the end of the prosecution’s case.

On both charges, Sabudin, who was then senior deputy director of the DBKL Civil Engineering and Urban Transport division, was charged with corruptly receiving a bribe of RM200,000 in cash from Wong, whose company was in charge of grinding and resurfacing works for DBKL, as an inducement for him to issue a work permit to the company.

He was charged with committing the offences at a petrol station convenience store at Jalan Lingkaran Tengah 2, Bukit Antarabangsa, Kuala Lumpur, and in front of his residence in Ukay Perdana, Ampang, on June 9, 2018, and January 17, 2019, respectively.

The charges were framed under section 17(a) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission Act 2009, which provides for imprisonment for up to 20 years and a fine of not less than five times the amount of bribe involved, or RM10,000, whichever higher, upon conviction. – Bernama, June 2, 2023.