Ku Nan's RM1m graft trial starts today
A graft trial involving an amount of RM1 million against former Federal Territories minister Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor will proceed today.
The Kuala Lumpur High Court has dismissed his application to recuse justice Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali from presiding the case.
A graft trial involving an amount of RM1 million against former Federal Territories minister Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor will proceed today.
The Kuala Lumpur High Court has dismissed his application to recuse justice Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali from presiding the case.
Nazlan made the decision after hearing submissions from both the accused's lawyer Tan Hock Chuan and deputy public prosecutor Julia Ibrahim.
He said after considering circumstances of the case and basis of Tengku Adnan's application, the court found no merit Tan's argument of the danger of bias.
He said it is also the duty of the court to ensure a fair trial against Tengku Adnan.
Nazlan added that there would be no difference if the trial is to be transferred to another High Court judge.
He said the trial is still open for the prosecution to elicit testimony from businessperson Tan Eng Boon, another accused in the trial, who had pleaded guilty to an alternative charge.
"In short, there is absolutely no basis of real danger on my part to be biased. There is no basis to support the existence of a real danger of bias.
"This application is therefore without merit. I dismiss this application," Nazlan ruled.
Nazlan also dismissed Tengku Adnan's application to stay the trial pending appeal to the Court of Appeal.
It was reported that Tengku Adnan, who is BN secretary-general, had filed a bid to recuse Nazlan on Wednesday citing that he feared that he would not receive a fair trial.
Nazlan had meted out a sentence against Eng Boon accused in the same trial.
On Nov 15 last year, Tengku Adnan pleaded not guilty to a charge of corruptly receiving RM1 million from Tan, to approve an application by a company to increase the plot ratio relating to a development project along Jalan Semarak.
On the same day, Tan was charged under Section 16(b)(A) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Act 2009 for paying an RM1 million bribe to Tengku Adnan.
He was also charged under Section 165 of Penal Code for abetting Tengku Adnan in committing the offence.
The alleged payment was made on Dec 27, 2013.
Tan pleaded guilty under the alternative charge and was fined RM1.5 million.
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