Published: Friday November 14, 2008 MYT 12:15:00 PM
Updated: Friday November 14, 2008 MYT 6:28:23 PM
Former deputy DG in court again over more graft charges
By CHRISTINA TAN
KLANG: Former Immigration Department deputy director-general (control division) Yusof Abu Bakar claimed trial in a Sessions Court here to four counts of graft for allegedly accepting bribes amounting to RM35,600.
Yusof, 54, from Seremban, pleaded not guilty to all charges Friday.
He is alleged to have committed the offence at the North-South expressway northbound Serdang rest stop in Sepang district between Apr 29 and July 7.
He is said to have obtained bribes from a sales manager through a third person, Munir Mohd Hamid, as an inducement to approve the extension of the China visitation passes.
If convicted, Yusof can be jailed up to 20 years and fined RM10,000 or five times the amount of the bribe, whichever is higher, for each charge punishable under Section 16 of the Anti-Corruption Act.
Yusof was arrested on Jul 12, 2008, and was first charged in the Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court on Oct 14 under the same Act with nine counts of bribery involving RM82,500.
Deputy Public Prosecutor of the Anti-Corruption Agency Ng Siew Wee applied for both cases to be heard together as a joint trial at the Kuala Lumpur court because both cases involved similar offences and witnesses.
She also asked for a gag order to protect the identity of the manager.
She added that the Kuala Lumpur court has granted the order based on the same grounds and the possibility of job termination by the manager’s company.
However, Judge Aslam Zainuddin questioned Ng on the matter jurisdiction for Kuala Lumpur to hear a Selangor case.
He also did not allow the gag order and questioned the prosecution how revealing the manager’s identity could endanger the manager.
Aslam allowed Yusof bail without security and fixed Nov 27 for mention for the prosecution to further offer submissions on the issue of transferring the case to Kuala Lumpur.
Later, Yusof was taken to a Petaling Jaya Sessions Court with accepting a bribe of RM5,500 to approve the extension of China visit passes.
Yusof, 54, pleaded not guilty to the charge in the trial on Friday.
He is alleged to have accepted the cash bribe between 4.30pm to 5pm on June 14 in front of a fast food outlet along the Kuala Lumpur-Seremban highway.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Ng Siew Wee’s appeal to transfer the proceedings of Yusof’s 14 charges to the Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court was denied by judge Rozina Ayob.
The judge said the court needed time to study issues concerning local jurisdiction before making a decision.
The trial continues with the next mention on Dec 22.
If found guilty, Yusof can be jailed up to 20 years and fined five times the amount of the bribe or RM10,000, whichever is higher, for each charge punishable under Section 16 of the Anti-Corruption Act.
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