A Malaysian court acquits Zizie Izette Abdul Samad of three abetment charges in a RM2.8 million corruption case linked to RM150 million investments
KUALA LUMPUR: The Sessions Court here today acquitted and discharged Datin Seri Zizie Izette Abdul Samad of all three charges of abetting in a corruption case involving RM2.8 million, linked to a RM150 million investment in Public Mutual Berhad unit trusts, dating back 11 years.
Judge Rosli Ahmad delivered the ruling after finding that the defence had successfully raised reasonable doubts at the end of the defence’s case.
Having considered the entirety of the evidence, this court finds that the accused has successfully raised a reasonable doubt in this case, while the prosecution has failed to prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt.
“Accordingly, this court orders that the accused be acquitted and discharged of all three charges,” he said.
Zizie Izette, 47, the wife of the late former Kinabatangan Member of Parliament Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin, appeared visibly moved upon hearing the court’s decision.
Judge Rosli, in delivering his judgment, held that the prosecution was required to prove all the essential elements of the principal offence against the first accused (Bung Moktar), who died on Dec 5 last year.
“However, in this case, the charge against the first accused was withdrawn following his death. As a result, the prosecution was unable to establish the element of abetment,” he said.
The judge further found that Zizie Izette did not know the investment in question, based on the evidence presented by both the prosecution and the defence.
He also ruled that the RM2.8 million alleged by the prosecution to be a bribe was, in fact, an introduction fee, and not a bribe, noting that the defence’s position was consistent with the testimonies of the 24th prosecution witness, Norhaili Ahmad Mokhtar, and the 25th prosecution witness, Madhi Abdul Hamid.
“Accordingly, the accused did not abet the offence through any unlawful agreement or conspiracy, and the introduction fee did not amount to a bribe,” Rosli said.
Judge Rosli, in his judgment, said established legal principles clearly state that one of the elements of the abetment charge requires the prosecution to prove that the principal offence was committed before an accused can be convicted of abetment.
He said, in this case, the prosecution was required to prove that the deceased, Bung Moktar, had committed the principal offence of obtaining a bribe under Section 17(a) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act.
“However, there was a recent development in this case when the deceased passed away on Dec 5, 2025. Upon the prosecution’s application, this court ordered his discharge and acquittal in accordance with Section 254 of the Criminal Procedure Code.
“As a result of the discharge and acquittal, the deceased is deemed an innocent person because no finding of guilt was ever recorded against him. In other words, the prosecution failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the deceased had committed the offence of soliciting or obtaining a bribe,” he said.
Rosli held that the discharge and acquittal effectively removed a fundamental element required to sustain the abetment charges against Zizie Izette, namely, proof that the principal offender had committed the corruption offence.
“Applying the legal principle in this case, where the principal offender has been discharged and acquitted, the alleged abettor, who is accused of assisting the principal offender in committing the offence, likewise cannot be convicted of abetment,” he said.
Meanwhile, Rosli said Zizie Izette, in her defence, claimed she had neither knowledge of nor involvement in her late husband’s official duties as chairman of Felcra Berhad, strengthening her defence against the abetment charges.
He said Zizie Izette consistently maintained that she was unaware of, and played no role in, the deceased’s official responsibilities at Felcra.
He said the defence supported this claim through the testimonies of the accused, the deceased, and the 26th prosecution witness (PW26), former Felcra Berhad Group Chief Financial Officer Mohd Azmy Abu Samah, all of which showed that the accused was not involved in the alleged offence.
Rosli said the court found Zizie Izette’s testimony to be credible, consistent and corroborated by the evidence of other prosecution witnesses.
“This finding further strengthens the accused’s claim of innocence, as her role was merely to introduce PW24 and PW25 (Public Mutual Berhad investment agents Norhaili Ahmad Mokhtar and Madhi Abdul Hamid) to the deceased and PW26.
“The accused did not expect PW24 and PW25 to pay her an introduction fee arising from their meeting with the deceased, and the payment was made voluntarily. She did not inform the deceased that she had received the introduction fee, and the deceased himself was unaware of it.
