Senior MACC officer gets 3 years, whipping in missing RM25m case
A senior MACC enforcement officer today pleaded guilty to a lesser misappropriation charge involving US$6.94 million (RM25 million) cash evidence linked to a major corruption case.
As a result, the Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court sentenced Shahrum Nizam Baharuddin to a three-year jail term and two strokes of the whip.
On Jan 4...
A senior MACC enforcement officer today pleaded guilty to a lesser misappropriation charge involving US$6.94 million (RM25 million) cash evidence linked to a major corruption case.
As a result, the Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court sentenced Shahrum Nizam Baharuddin to a three-year jail term and two strokes of the whip.
On Jan 4, the 40-year-old accused claimed trial to a heavier misappropriation charge (under Section 409 of the Penal Code) involving the evidence linked to a case against former Malaysian External Intelligence Organisation (MEIO) director-general Hasanah Abdul Hamid.
However, with Shahrum today pleading guilty to the lesser property misappropriation charge under Section 403 of the Penal Code, the prosecution has dropped the Section 409 charge against him.
The Section 409 charge carried a punishment of maximum 20 years in jail, fine, and whipping. In contrast, the Section 403 charge only carried a maximum jail term of five years as well as whipping and fine.
Hasanah was in 2018 charged with criminal breach of trust involving RM50.4 million belonging to the government.
The MACC seized cash and other belongings from her in relation to the investigation. In April last year, however, she was granted a discharge not amounting to an acquittal by the court.
Following this, she went to MACC to reclaim the seized cash but found RM25 million missing.
During proceedings before trial judge Suzana Hussin this morning, Shahrum affirmed the facts of the case when they were read out by deputy public prosecutor Ahmad Akram Gharib.
According to the facts read out in court, Shahrum committed the misappropriation offence between Dec 17, 2018, and April 9, 2019.
On Dec 17, 2018, he began committing the offence when he asked a fellow MACC officer to hand over part of the cash evidence, namely US$800 thousand to the accused.
Over a series of further transactions up to April 9, 2019, Shahrum managed to convert the total misappropriated sums into Malaysian Ringgit via the assistance of other witnesses.
However, the plot began unravelling on Aug 21 last year, when the Kuala Lumpur Magistrate’s Court ordered that the US$6.94 million cash exhibit be returned to Hasanah (she was granted a DNAA earlier on April that year).
When an investigating officer asked Shahrum several times for the return of the cash exhibit, the accused failed each time to hand over the funds.
Then on Sept 10 last year, Shahrum ordered a MACC officer to hand over what was represented as the cash evidence to other antigraft agency officers to hand back to Hasanah.
However, the other MACC officers became suspicious when the so-called cash evidence turned out to be fake currencies.
Following an investigation, Shahrum was detained on Sept 13 last year.
The MACC found that the accused had used the money to buy various things, such as:
1. A two-and-a-half storey house at Taman Suria Warisan, Kota Warisan, Sepang, Selangor, which was worth RM750,000;
2. Eight luxury watches worth RM397,580;
3. Two Ducati brand motorcycles worth more than RM600,000;
4. A Ford Raptor 2.0 four-wheel-drive vehicle worth RM219,000;
5. Two plots of land in Jerantut, Pahang, worth RM483,220;
6. A Honda Civic Type R 2.4L Turbo vehicle worth RM290,030;
7. A Mercedez Benz A250 Sport worth RM130,000.
During mitigation for a lesser punishment, Shahrum’s counsel Ahmad Hafiz A Bakar said that his client has pleaded guilty to the alternative charge rather, which saved the court’s time.
The lawyer said that the accused, who has been with MACC since 2005, was awarded best employee four times.
“Today is his first offence and he has never been convicted before this.
“The offence has brought darkness into not only his life but that of his family.
“The accused promises not to repeat the offence and apologizes (over the offence),” Hafiz said.
However, Akram urged the court to impose a deterrent sentence because of the seriousness of the case.
“The offence was committed by a civil servant entrusted with a duty (to safeguard the cash evidence), but he took the opportunity for personal interest. This case involves US$6.94 million.
“The image of MACC as an organization as well as those in it has been tainted (by Shahrum’s offence),” Akram said.
Suzana then convicted Shahrum over the Section 403 offence.
The judge imposed a three-year jail sentence (to run from the date of arrest) and two times whipping.
“The court hopes that this sentencing can serve as a lesson to you not to commit a further offence in future,” Suzana said as Shahrum looked on from the dock.
The judge also ordered the seized items - which includes the vehicles, watches and plots of land as well as cash among others - to be forfeited to the Malaysian government.
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