Ex-Genneva directors have right to know why they are guilty, says lawyer

Four former Genneva Sdn Bhd directors were jailed and fined for illegal deposit taking amounting to more than RM100 million, and money laundering

PUTRAJAYA: A senior lawyer said four former Genneva Sdn Bhd directors are entitled to know the reasons for their conviction by the Court of Appeal for illegal deposit taking amounting to more than RM100 million and money laundering charges.

Muhammad Shafee Abdullah said the final appellate court in 2018 did not provide a written judgment when it found them guilty of 154 charges on both offences.

“Judges from the apex court are expected to write judgments, especially when they set aside the acquittals of lower courts,” Shafee said.

He said the importance of making available the written grounds was emphasised by former chief justice Arifin Zakaria in one of his Federal Court judgments.

He said this when submitting to a preliminary objection raised by the prosecution following an application by Ng Poh Weng, Marcus Yee Yuen Seng, Chin Wai Leong and Liew Chee Wah to conduct “a review upon a review” of a Court of Appeal ruling last year.

Shafee further said a Court of Appeal bench in 2017 allowed the prosecution’s appeal to set aside the acquittal and instead find them guilty of the charges.

However, just before imposing sentence, the court reduced the original 224 charges to 154.

“Seventy charges were removed and the remaining 154 charges were not read to them before sentencing.

“The prosecution says it is mere administrative but we are of the view it is an illegality,” Shafee said.

He said accused persons could not walk away without knowing the charges they were convicted of.

He said Section 105 of the Court of Appeal Rules 1995 allowed the court to use its inherent powers to review its decision to prevent injustice or an abuse of process.

“Our application for a second review of last year’s Court of Appeal decision is rare but should be allowed in the interest of justice,” he said.

Deputy public prosecutor Umar Saifuddin Jaffar said the application should be thrown out as it would open the floodgates for others to review the findings of the Court of Appeal.

“The grievance of the four were addressed but dismissed during the first review last year,” he said.

Judge Kamaludin Md Said, who chaired a three-member panel, deferred ruling to Oct 8 as the issue raised by Shafee was novel and the court needed time to deliberate.

Judge Yew Jen Kie, who chaired the first panel, had said the four were using the review application to reopen and re-examine the final decision of their appeal.

She had also said that the failure of the appellate bench to provide judgment did not constitute a special and exceptional circumstances warranting a review.

On Feb 21, 2018, a three-member panel chaired by Mohtarudin Baki sentenced the four to three years in jail and fined them RM1 million each for money laundering.

The court also sentenced them to five years’ jail and another fine of RM1 million for illegal deposit-taking.

It ordered the sentences to run consecutively, meaning the four would have to spend eight years in jail.

Earlier, the Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court, on May 16, 2013, freed the four after finding that the defence had raised reasonable doubt over the prosecution’s case. This finding was upheld by the High Court in 2016.

The four were accused of committing the money laundering offences at Menara Public Bank in Kuala Lumpur between July 2008 and June 2009.

They were also accused of illegally accepting public deposits at the company’s premises on Jalan Kuchai Maju 6. Kuala Lumpur, between November 2008 and July 2009. - FMT