Another sodomy trial in the making?

A popular pro-Umno blogger claims of a new sodomy allegation against Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim while critics have already started to call it 'yet another Umno conspiracy'.

KUALA LUMPUR: Pro-Umno blogger Papagomo (http://www.papagomo.com/) has claimed that a fresh sodomy case was being brought against Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim.

In a blog posting yesterday night, the blogger claimed that he had received information that a university student had lodged a police report againt the PKR de facto leader, claiming to have been sodomised the previous night.

The blogger alleged that the report was made in a police station in one of the northern states in the country.

“It is not known if the report is real or not but what is certain is that all embassies in Malaysia must not to protect Anwar if he decides to hide himself like he did in the previous sodomy case,” wrote the blogger.

Without divulging more, the blogger teased his readers, asking them wait for more in the next development.

Attempts by FMT to obtain a confirmation from the police if such a police report existed were unsuccessful.

Papagomo had also posted a photo of the said student in a police vehicle. The student was accompanied by another man in what appeared to be a police patrol car.

Umno’s new tactic

In an immediate response, Edy Noor Reduan, a spokesperson for the PKR-linked Solidariti Anak Muda Malaysia (SAMM) said that this ‘Sodomy III’ would be Umno’s brand new tactic.

He noted that this third installment followed the failures to prove the previous two other sodomy ‘conspiracies’ against Anwar.

“The public is sick with news items that are obscene in nature and will be nauseated if another conspiracy is created. Utusan [Malaysia] will once again compete with Playboy magazine.

“And for sure tens of millions of public funds will be used to construct a ‘state of the art’ conspiracy since Sodomy II failed to put Anwar behind bars,” he said in a statement.

PKR’s strategic director Rafizi Ramli also rubbished this latest claim in a tweet feed late last night.

Two sodomy trials

On Jan 9 this year, High Court Judge Mohamad Zabidin Mohd Diah acquitted and discharged Anwar of the charge of sodomising his former aide Mohd Saiful Bukhari.

Three years ago, Anwar was accused of committing the act at a Desa Damansara condominium unit in Bukit Damansara between 3.10pm and 4.30pm on June 26, 2008.

The offence of “carnal intercourse against the order of nature” under Section 377B of the Penal Code carries up to 20 years’ imprisonment and whipping on conviction.

The Attorney-General’s Chambers is appealing Anwar’s discharge and acquittal.

Following Saiful’s police report against Anwar then, the PKR leader had temporarily sought refuge at the Turkey embassy before he finally agreed to be questioned by the police. This was why Papagomo had made reference to diplomats not to protect Anwar over the latest accusation.

The first time Anwar was accused of sodomy was in 1998, where he was charged together with his adopted brother, Sukma Darmawan Sasmitaat Madja, with sodomising his wife Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail’s driver Azizan Abu Bakar.

Anwar was found guilty in 2000 and sentenced to nine years in jail.

However, Anwar was freed on Sept 5, 2004 after the Federal Court set aside the sodomy conviction and jail term. The court also overturned the conviction and six-year jail sentence of Sukma.