KUALA LUMPUR: Umno supreme council member Datuk Lokman Noor Adam remains a free man after the prosecution withdrew its appeal against his acquittal and discharge on a charge of spreading false news regarding the death of a police officer that was attributed to the Covid-19 vaccine three years ago.
Deputy public prosecutor Datuk Badiuszaman Ahmad told High Court judge Datuk Azhar Abdul Hamid yesterday that he had received instructions to withdraw the appeal against the decision of the Sessions Court, which had acquitted and discharged Lokman, Bernama reported.
On June 23 last year, Sessions Court Judge Nor Hasniah Ab Razak discharged and acquitted Lokman of the charge after finding that the prosecution had failed to establish a prima facie case against him.
On Oct 1, 2021, Lokman pleaded not guilty to a charge of spreading false news through an audio-visual recording about the death of a police officer linked to vaccinations for Covid-19.
The information was allegedly disseminated through Facebook under the profile name “Lokman Adam” at 10.38pm on April 9, 2021, to cause public unease.
The recording was then viewed at the office of the Cyber and Multimedia Crime Investigation Division, Commercial Crime Investigation Department, Bukit Aman police headquarters, Menara KPJ, here at 8.55pm on April 11, 2021.