Ex-home minister’s aide received RM350,000 in paper bags, court told

 Nexuscorpgroup Sdn Bhd managing director Wan Azhar Mohamed Yusof says the cash was a 5% commission for helping the company secure a police project.

Sayed Amir Muzzakkir Al Sayed Mohamad (centre) faces three corruption charges in connection with a tender for maintenance services and the supply of spare parts for police equipment. (Bernama pic)

PETALING JAYA:

A witness told the Kuala Lumpur sessions court today he gave Sayed Amir Muzzakkir Al Sayed Mohamad, the political secretary to a former home minister, RM350,000 in cash in paper bags as part of a 5% commission for helping a company secure a police project.

Nexuscorpgroup Sdn Bhd (NXG) managing director Wan Azhar Mohamed Yusof said Sayed requested the RM350,000 at the firm’s former office in Shah Alam in early December 2020, Bernama reported.

“Sayed contacted me and asked, ‘Can you pay RM350,000? I need the money, in cash’. I informed Sayed that I could pay, but not in a lump sum.

“I also informed Sayed that I would make the payment in two instalments, and he agreed,” the main prosecution witness said in his statement at the trial in which Sayed faces three corruption charges involving RM350,000.

Wan Azhar, 51, said he instructed his finance manager, identified only as Chloe, to prepare payment vouchers for RM100,000 and RM250,000 on Dec 4 and Dec 8, 2020, respectively. Chloe then issued cash cheques for the two amounts.

He said that after cashing the cheques, he asked Sayed about the delivery of the money, and Sayed instructed him to hand it over at his office at Yayasan Tanah Aku in Publika.

“I handed over the money amounting to RM100,000, which was in a paper bag, to Sayed at around 4pm on Dec 4, 2020, and the money amounting to RM250,000, also in a paper bag, was handed over at 3.30pm on Dec 16, 2020.

“During the handovers, only Sayed and I were present,” he said.

Earlier, Wan Azhar said he first met Sayed in 2009 when Sayed began working as the CEO of Malsalink Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary of Dasar Jati Sdn Bhd (DJSB). At that point, Wan Azhar was a general manager at DJSB.

He said that in April 2020, Sayed contacted him after learning that NXG had received an invitation letter from the home ministry to take part in the RMPNet project tender.

“Sayed asked why I didn’t contact him. Sayed informed me that he saw my company (NXG) listed in the tender for the RMPNet project.

“At that time, Sayed was the political secretary to the minister. Sayed also informed me that I was the only one who did not contact him, whereas other contractors entering the RMPNet tender had contacted him to ask for help in securing the project,” he said.

He said Sayed told him he could help NXG secure the RMPNet project and would introduce a friend to discuss the matter.

Sayed, 43, was charged on May 23, 2024 with two counts of receiving bribes amounting to RM350,000 from Wan Azhar as an inducement to help NXG obtain the police project worth RM381,112,042.44.

The offences were allegedly committed at the Yayasan Tanah Aku office in Solaris Dutamas here at 4pm on Dec 4, 2020, and 3.30pm on Dec 16, 2020, respectively.

Sayed was also charged with soliciting a bribe of RM350,000 from Wan Azhar for a similar purpose at the NXG office in Shah Alam in early December 2020.

The trial before judge Rosli Ahmad continues on Sept 22. - FMT