Mimos Berhad's former Finance General Manager was today sentenced to 56 years in prison and fined RM5.02 million by the Sessions Court here on eight counts of soliciting and accepting bribes amounting to more than RM500,000 million, 12 years ago.     

    

Khairuddin Khalid, 54, was found guilty after the defence trial and will serve only seven years in prison, however, as the court ordered the sentences to run concurrently effective today.

    

Judge Ahmad Zamzani Mohd Zain also allowed a stay of execution pending Khairuddin's appeal at the High Court but ordered him to pay the fine, 64 months imprisonment in default.

    

Khairuddin was unable to pay the fine and was then ordered to be sent to the Kajang Prison.  

    

In his judgement, Ahmad Zamzani described the accused's testimony as a mere denial and said that the defence witnesses did not corroborate each other.

   

Khairuddin was charged with four counts of soliciting bribes through four cheques amounting to RM985,248 from the executive chairman of Corporate Eight Asset Management Sdn Bhd Muhammad Khalid Ismail.

    

He was further charged with accepting four bribes from the same individual under Section 11(a) of the Act.  

    

He was found guilty of accepting RM502,002.37 as a fee for Mimos Berhad's RM5.5 million investment in the asset management company, under Section 10(a)(bb) of the Anti Corruption Act 1997.  

    

Khairuddin, who now works as a chief operating officer in an information technology company, committed the offence at the premises of Corporate Eight Asset Management, Menara Weld, 76, Jalan Raja Chulan, between May 23, 2001 and Feb 8, 2002.  

    

The prosecution was conducted by Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission deputy public prosecutor Mohd Nur Lokman Samingan while counsel Azi Azlin Zulkifli appeared for Khairuddin.

    

- Bernama