KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 4 — The prime minister’s former senior political secretary Datuk Seri Shamsul Iskandar Mohd Akin today pleaded not guilty to four corruption charges under the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act in court, over his alleged receiving of bribery worth over RM176,000 from businessman Albert Tei Jiann Cheing.

Shamsul Iskandar is accused of having corruptly obtained and received bribes from Tei in the form of cash worth RM140,000 and over RM36,000 in furniture and electrical appliances.

Shamsul Iskandar, dressed in a green and yellow batik shirt, pleaded not guilty to the four charges and claimed trial.

If convicted over any of the charges, the penalty he faces is a maximum 20 years’ jail term, and a fine of RM10,000 or at least five times the sum of the bribe, whichever amount is higher.

The charges were read out in a packed courtroom at the Sessions Court in Kuala Lumpur.

Sessions Court judge Suzana Hussin decided to fix bail at RM150,000 with two Malaysian sureties, with three additional conditions including for Shamsul Iskandar to surrender his passport to the court until the trial is over.

The two other conditions are for Shamsul Iskandar to report to the MACC’s office once every month, and to not disturb any prosecution witnesses until the end of the trial.

His case will be mentioned at the Sessions Court on January 8.

What Shamsul Iskandar was charged with

Here are the details of Shamsul Iskandar’s four charges:

• On November 24, 2023, he is alleged to have corruptly agreed to accept RM100,000 cash as gratification for himself from Tei at the carpark of Majestic Hotel in Kuala Lumpur.
• Between December 7, 2023 and January 31, 2024, he is alleged to have corruptly obtained furniture and electrical appliances worth RM14,580.03 from Tei as gratification for himself at 131, Jalan Medan Serai, Bukit Bandaraya in Kuala Lumpur.
• On January 29, 2024, he is alleged to have corruptly obtained RM40,000 cash as gratification for himself from Tei at 131, Jalan Medan Serai, Bukit Bandaraya in Kuala Lumpur.
• Between February 26 to March 5, 2024, he is alleged to have corruptly obtained furniture and electrical appliances worth RM22,249 as gratification for himself from Tei at 26, Jalan P14a 1/1, Presint 14 in Putrajaya.

The four charges against Shamsul Iskandar were brought against him under Section 17(a) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act.

Section 17(a) covers the offence of accepting or obtaining bribes as an agent, as an inducement or reward to act in relation to the agent’s principal’s affairs or business. 

Under all four charges, Shamsul Iskandar was accused of having allegedly obtained the bribes as an agent of the Malaysian government, via his then role as the prime minister’s senior political secretary, as inducement to help Tei’s companies to get approval for mineral exploration licences in Sabah.

What the lawyers argued

Earlier, deputy public prosecutor Farah Ezlin Yusop Khan proposed for bail to be set at RM300,000, due to the charges involving serious offences.

She had also urged the court to set three additional bail conditions to prevent any prosecution witnesses from being disturbed or to prevent any delays to the trial, since Shamsul Iskandar had previously had an important position and he could be a flight risk.

She said RM300,000 is a reasonable amount to secure Shamsul Iskandar’s attendance in court. 

Shamsul Iskandar’s lawyer Datuk Amer Hamzah Arshad argued that the offered RM300,000 bail amount was exorbitant, and sought for a lower bail amount of RM50,000.

Among other things, Amer Hamzah said his client had no issues with reporting to the MACC’s office regularly and said there was no need for the passport to be surrendered to court.

Amer Hamzah argued that it was unfair to assume that Shamsul Iskandar may tamper with witnesses because of his previous position and network, adding that his client had previously denied receiving any bribes and cooperated with the MACC during investigations. He said there was no allegation or evidence of alleged witness tampering against his client.

He said his client was eager to clear his name and that they too do not want the trial to be delayed.

Shamsul Iskandar’s lawyer Yusmadi Yusoff noted that his client had immediately stepped down as the PM’s senior political secretary following news on this matter, adding that his client is Melaka PKR chief and PKR’s Hang Tuah Jaya division chief and is not a flight risk.

Yusmadi said his client has medical conditions such as hypertension and diabetes, and argued against an excessive bail amount as he is now unemployed and the wife is a civil servant and with two children still studying.

After hearing arguments from both sides, the Sessions Court decided on the RM150,000 bail amount and granted all three bail conditions sought by the prosecution.

Other lawyers who represented Shamsul Iskandar today include Joshua Tay and Lee Yeow Wei.