KOTA KINABALU: The Sessions Court here today ordered former Sabah State Water Department (JANS) director Ag Mohd Tahir Mohd Talib, 62, his wife Fauziah Piut, 59, and former JANS deputy director Lim Lam Beng, 70, to enter their defence on 37 charges of money laundering after the prosecution successfully established a prima facie case against them.
Judge Abu Bakar Manat scheduled the defence proceedings for Feb 26 to 28 and April 28 to 30 next year.
Delivering his decision at the end of the prosecution’s case, Abu Bakar stated that witness testimony revealed RM23.69 million in cash was found and confiscated from Ag Mohd Tahir’s office at Wisma Majlis Ugama Islam Sabah (MUIS).
Additionally, RM8.56 million was discovered at the couple’s home; RM9.19 million from a Mazda vehicle; and RM4.13 million from a Mercedes-Benz.
Foreign currencies such as US Dollars, Pound Sterling, Euros, UAE Dirhams, Thai Baht, Chinese Yuan, Hong Kong Dollars, Japanese Yen, Vietnamese Dong, South Korean Won, Saudi Riyals, Singapore Dollars, and Indonesian Rupiah were also confiscated.
Another RM4.15 million held in Ag Mohd Tahir’s bank accounts was also seized.
“Throughout the trial, based on witness testimonies and the discovery of substantial cash sums at various locations, the court is satisfied that the prosecution has proven that the first accused (Ag Mohd Tahir) abused his position as the director of the Sabah State Water Department.
“(Ag Mohd Tahir) was involved in illegal activities, specifically corruption through a centralised collection scheme, which operated from 2005 to 2016,” the judge stated in his ruling.
He added that based on witness testimony, it is evident that the centralised collection scheme could not have been executed without Ag Mohd Tahir’s knowledge, direction, approval, and involvement.
The judge noted that during investigations and cross-examinations of prosecution witnesses, the accused failed to explain the source of the confiscated cash.
“The same applies to the luxury cars and watches, all of which were in the possession of the first accused (Ag Mohd Tahir) at the time of the raids,” he said.
Abu Bakar further noted that Fauziah had over RM2.22 million in her personal bank accounts and owned 921 pieces of jewellery and 93 luxury handbags.
“The total value of the charges against her (Fauziah) exceeds RM6 million. The question remains: what was the source of income or funds enabling the second accused (Fauziah) to acquire such assets? The second accused also failed to explain the source of these funds during the investigation,” he added.
The judge stated that based on the discoveries, witness testimonies, documents, and circumstantial evidence, the court is satisfied on the balance of probabilities that the accused, through her husband Ag Mohd Tahir, was involved in possessing illegal proceeds.
He added that while Fauziah was not directly involved in the centralised collection scheme, her possession of proceeds from unlawful activities constitutes an offence under Section 4(1)(b) of the AMLA.
Ag Mohd Tahir faces one charge under Section 4(1)(a) of the Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act (AMLA) 2001 and 11 charges under Section 4(1)(b) of the same Act.
Ag Mohd Tahir and Fauziah, are jointly charged with two offences under Section 4(1)(b) of the AMLA, while Fauziah and Lim also face 19 and four charges, respectively, under the same section and Act.
