PUTRAJAYA: The Court of Appeal today allowed an application by Indonesian businessman Aldrin Pratama Widjaja for the return of RM1 million he had posted as bail.
A three-judge bench led by Datuk Che Mohd Ruzima Ghazali also allowed Aldrin’s application for the return of his passport and cancellation of the bail condition requiring him to report monthly to the Cyberjaya police station.
Aldrin’s application was made through lawyer Datuk Hisyam Teh Poh Teik.
Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) Mohd Ashrof Adrin Kamarul, representing the prosecution, did not oppose the application.
Sitting with Justice Che Mohd Ruzima on the bench were Datuk Mohamed Zaini Mazlan and Datuk Azmi Ariffin.
Aldrin was granted bail of RM1 million with two sureties by the Court of Appeal in 2022 which had allowed his application to stay a warrant of committal issued against him.
On Feb 12 this year, the Kuala Lumpur High Court ruled that Aldrin is not Datuk Paiman Shakiman, the individual who had been sentenced to 13 years in prison for cheating and falsifying documents.
The High Court conducted an inquiry proceedings to determine Aldrin’s identity.
Paiman, also a businessman, was sentenced to 13 years in prison by the Sessions Court after he was found guilty of cheating and forging documents for a sum of RM12 million belonging to two Datuks in an investment fraud case between 2005 and 2006.
He appealed against the conviction and prison sentence at the High Court but absconded after being released on bail of RM750,000, prompting the court to issue an arrest warrant and imprisonment order.
In 2021, police arrested Aldrin claiming that he was Paiman. A fingerprint check at the National Registration Department’s biometric system indicated that he was indeed Paiman.
On Dec 2, 2021, the High Court ordered Aldrin to serve the sentence imposed by the Sessions Court, leading him to appeal to the Court of Appeal to challenge the committal order.
In 2022, the Court of Appeal allowed a stay of execution on the committal order and granted Aldrin bail of RM1 million.
In 2023, the Court of Appeal ordered the High Court to conduct an inquiry to determine Aldrin’s identity. On Feb 12, this year, the High Court ruled that Aldrin is not Paiman.
Mohd Ashrof confirmed to Bernama that the prosecution has filed an appeal against the High Court’s ruling. He added that the notice of appeal was submitted on Feb 20 this year.
