Ex-tourism ministry aide sentenced to six years jail and RM8.8mil fine for accepting bribes in 2018-2019
PETALING JAYA: A former political aide has been handed a six-year prison sentence and ordered to pay an RM8.8 million fine following his conviction on corruption charges stemming from offences committed seven years ago.
Kuala Lumpur sessions court judge Suzana Hussin delivered the sentence today after determining that the defense failed to establish reasonable doubt in the case involving Saifullah Minggu, who previously served as an aide to Malaysia’s tourism, arts and culture minister.
According to FMT, the 34-year-old defendant became visibly emotional upon hearing the verdict, breaking down as the judge read out the sentence in court.
Saifullah was found guilty of accepting bribes totaling RM1.765 million during his tenure at the ministry. Should he fail to settle the RM8.8 million fine, he faces an additional seven-year custodial sentence.
The case originated from 19 charges filed against Saifullah, with the prosecution successfully establishing a prima facie case on eight charges during proceedings in February of last year. Following that determination, the court ordered him to mount his defense.
The eight charges centered on allegations that Saifullah received RM1.765 million in corrupt payments from Ronald Seto, the owner of Inter Bev Network Sdn Bhd. The payments were allegedly channeled through an intermediary named Roslan Lahada.
According to the prosecution, these payments served as inducements for Saifullah to use his position to help Inter Bev secure a government tender for brand and creative production services.
The corrupt transactions took place across several locations in the Klang Valley between December 2018 and March 2019. Venues where the offences occurred included:
- Red Box Karaoke outlet at Pavilion Shopping Centre in Kuala Lumpur
- Coffee Bean outlet at Pavilion Shopping Centre in Kuala Lumpur
- The senior private secretary’s office at the ministry headquarters in Putrajaya
- Vipod Residences in Temasya Anggun, Glenmarie, Selangor
- A Petronas petrol station in Dengkil
The timeframe for these offences spanned from December 21, 2018, through March 1, 2019.
At the time these corrupt activities took place, Datuk Mohamaddin Ketapi held the position of tourism, arts and culture minister.
While delivering her decision, Judge Suzana offered words of counsel to the convicted defendant, acknowledging his relatively young age and encouraging personal transformation.
The judge urged Saifullah to use this experience as an opportunity for genuine reflection on his actions and to pursue positive change moving forward.
Despite the conviction, the court granted a stay of execution to allow for an appeal to be filed at the High Court level. Bail was set at RM280,000 for the stay period.
The stay of execution means Saifullah will not immediately begin serving his sentence while his legal team prepares an appeal to a higher court. This is standard procedure in the Malaysian judicial system, allowing convicted individuals the opportunity to challenge their convictions through the appellate process.
