Ex-spy chief’s RM50.4m CBT trial: Individual bought six luxury Omega watches worth RM142,410 with cash, says witness

KUALA LUMPUR, April 5 — The High Court trial on the US$12.1 million (RM50.4 million) criminal breach of trust case involving former Malaysian External Intelligence Organisation (MEIO) director-general Datuk Hasanah Abdul Hamid today was told that six Omega luxury watches of various models were bought by an individual at a luxury watch store at Pavilion three years ago.

The shop’s sales consultant Chua Sook Shin @ Miss Juraiporn Chua, 29,  said all six watches were worth between RM20,000 and RM40,000 and were paid in cash, totalling RM142,410 by an individual.

“On May 3, 2018, I was on duty from 10am to 10pm at the premises. My colleague Jowy Kong Kim Kee (Jowy) was also on duty. At around noon, four male customers came into the shop and asked about several Omega watches.

“I assisted Jowy to serve the four customers and after Jowy provided an explanation, they chose six watches and one of them made a cash payment totalling RM142,410,” said the fifth prosecution witness after reading her witness statement in front of Judge Datuk Ahmad Shahrir Mohd Salleh.

On October 6 last year, in the opening statement on the first day of trial, the prosecution said they would prove that Hasanah committed breach of trust amounting to US$12.1 million with a part of it being used to purchase six luxury watches and causing the Malaysian government to suffer losses.

According to Chua, she handled and received the payment for the watches and recorded the details with the model of the watches and price into the Point of Sales (POS) system.

“I then issued six invoices for the watches. I also issued a form known as a Customer Relationship Management Form to the buyer and the purpose of the form is to collect customer data,” she said.

She however, could not recognise any of the individuals who bought the watches because it happened too long ago.

According to Chua, the watch models bought were Omega Seamaster Aqua Terra, Omega Seamaster Diver 300, Omega Speedmaster Moonwatch and Omega Constellation Ladies.

The prosecution witness said in November 2018, an officer from the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) came to the store and enquired about the purchase of the six watches.

“I checked the POS system and confirmed the purchase of the six watches at our store. I also printed out copies of the invoices we issued for the purchase to be handed over to the MACC,” Chua said.

Meanwhile, Etihad Airway officer, Emi Azura Samsudin, 41, informed the court that the woman named “Hasanah” took a flight to Abu Dhabi together with two individuals on April 8, 2018 and all three subsequently returned home on April 10, 2018.

On October 25, 2018, Hasanah, 64, pleaded not guilty to charges that a civil servant, the director-general of the Prime Minister’s Research Department committed criminal breach of trust amounting to US$12.1 million belonging to the Malaysian government.

She is charged with committing the offence at the director-general’s office, Research Division, Prime Minister’s Department, Kompleks JPM, Pusat Pentadbiran Kerajaan Persekutuan in Putrajaya between April 30 and May 9, 2018, under Section 409 of the Penal Code that carries a jail sentence of up to 20 years if found guilty.

The trial, presided by Judge Datuk Ahmad Shahrir, resumes tomorrow. — Bernama