Sabah whistleblower threatens lawsuit over SMM's 'retaliation' claim

Summary

• Whistleblower Albert Tei issues a legal demand for Sabah Mineral Management to retract and apologise for a statement he claims defamed him.

• The company’s press release allegedly linked Tei to the viral photo of a private jet, which he denies circulating.

Sabah mining scandal whistleblower and businessperson Albert Tei has demanded that Sabah Mineral Management Sdn Bhd (SMM) retract its statement allegedly implicating him in circulating a photo of the company’s officers with a private jet.

The legal letter by the law firm Kian Ming Advocates & Solicitors yesterday also demanded that the company publish a public apology in major newspapers and pay an unspecified amount for allegedly damaging Tei’s reputation and causing him embarrassment and distress.

It claimed SMM’s July 21 press release insinuated that Tei and former SMM chief executive Jontih Enggihon are orchestrating a politically motivated campaign to attack and discredit SMM by circulating the photo.

“We are instructed that the said publication is false, baseless, and grossly defamatory of our client.

“It was issued recklessly and maliciously, with the full knowledge that the civil proceedings referenced therein are still pending before the court and no final determination has been made.

“Your premature and misleading disclosure of such allegations to the public constitutes a deliberate attempt to influence public perception and unjustly tarnish our client’s name,” the legal letter read, as sighted by Malaysiakini.

The letter was reportedly delivered to SMM yesterday and gave the company seven days to meet its demands or face legal action.

The letter followed a similar move by Jontih, who also claimed the SMM statement had defamed him and demanded RM10 million in damages.

Earlier this month, a photo of SMM CEO Natasha Sim, company secretary Emily Chong, and Sabah timber tycoon Elbert Lim standing next to the jet went viral.

This led to several Sabah politicians questioning the purpose of the trip and whether it involved corruption or a conflict of interest.

SMM issued a press release on July 21 denying wrongdoing.

It also said the photo was originally taken in August 2024 as part of a working visit to Indonesia, and claimed its reemergence may be politically motivated and linked to its ongoing lawsuit against Jontih and Tei.

SMM’s lawsuit last year alleged that Jontih and Tei had committed fraud, breach of fiduciary duty, tampering with official documents, and conspiracy to injure.

In the wake of the lawsuit, Jontih lodged a police report in November last year alleging that Sim accepted a jet trip without disclosing it to SMM’s management or board.

He claimed the trip was estimated to cost RM400,000 and allegedly involved Sim, her husband, Lim, and Lim’s two children.

Sim had denied the allegation, while SMM maintained that an internal investigation did not find any wrongdoing.

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