NAJIB’S SPY CHIEF’S REALLY RECITING THE QURAN AT HOME – OR PLOTTING TO ABSCOND? SUSPICIOUS ABSENCE STIRS CALLS FOR IMMEDIATE ARREST & REVOCATION OF BAIL – IF ‘RED SHIRTS’ JAMAL COULD FLEE TO INDONESIA, WHAT MORE HASANAH, ACCUSED OF STEALING RM50 MIL OF GOVT MONEY, WITH HER VAST INTEL NETWORK?

Justice Collin Lawrence Sequerah appears to be the judge every crook from the previous corrupted government increasingly fears nowadays. This is the judge who had refused to return the passport belonging to Zahid Hamidi so that the former deputy prime minister could fly to Saudi Arabia to perform “Umrah” due to the likelihood and risk of absconding.

This is also the same judge that former prime minister Najib Razak’s self-proclaimed hotshot lawyer – Shafee Abdullah – wanted to be recused from presiding over his money-laundering case last December. However, the judge had refused to step down from hearing how Mr. Shafee had lied, only to flip-flop and admitted to paying RM9.5 million by Najib.

To make matters worse, Justice Collin Lawrence Sequerah had also dismissed attorney Shafee’s application to disqualify the fearsome Gopal Sri Ram from leading the prosecution in his case involving 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB). Today, the same High Court judge issued an arrest warrant for Hasanah Abdul Hamid, the disgraced spy chief under Najib regime.

Apparently, Hasanah, the former director-general of the Malaysia External Intelligence Organization (MEIO), failed to appear in court for case management after being charged for criminal breach of trust (CBT) involving government funds totalling RM50.4 million. If found guilty under Section 409 of the Penal Code, she could be jailed up to maximum 20 years, as well as whipping and fine.

The 61-year-old Hasanah was Najib’s most trusted intelligence head until the ex-premier was unexpectedly ejected from office at the polls on May 9th. She was alleged to have taken US$12.1 million (RM50.4 million) belonging to the government on April 30 and May 9, from her office in the Prime Minister’s Department. She was subsequently released on bail by two guarantors.

The judge granted the prosecutor’s request for the issuance of arrest warrant as neither Hasanah nor her two bailor were present in court – without any valid reason. However, the former spy chief’s lawyer apologised to the court, claiming that it was the lawyer’s fault for failing to inform the accused of the proceedings today due to a misunderstanding.

To make the excuse more dramatic, law firm Azam Aziz Shaharudinali & Co also used the religion card to fish for sympathy – telling the court that the despicable “Bond girl” was reciting the Quran at home when informed of today’s court proceeding. It appears that crooks of the previous regime have the nasty habit of using the God during negotiations or appeals in court.

Interestingly, Hasanah lawyer, Khairul Azam played down the absence of his client when he argued that the prosecution should not have sought for the arrest warrant, as today was merely for a case management. The half-baked attorney should realize that Hasanah can be charged for contempt of court as her disrespectful act can be seen as a deliberate attempt to mock and insult the court.

Heck, even Najib Razak had not dared skipping the so-called “case management”. Last November, the former premier stubbornly remained seated outside the dock when he was supposed to enter the dock during the case management at the Sessions Court over the 25 corruption charges involving RM2.3 billion allegedly from sovereign wealth fund 1MDB.

Yes, when even former PM Najib had to attend his case management, who is spy woman Hasanah to skip the court hearing? Previously, former lawyer V K Lingam, who shot to popularity after being caught in a video clip boasting how he brokered promotions for judges, was sentenced to six months’ jail after he was found guilty of contempt of court.

Obviously, if Justice Collin Lawrence Sequerah had allowed the suspicious excuse that Hasanah had forgotten to appear (due to whatever reasons), it would set a bad precedent where every accused can stay at home or busy shopping elsewhere while their case is being mentioned in court, as if the court is some sort of hotel or restaurant that can be belittled.

If Najib’s refusal to enter the dock was seen as a slap in the face of the judicial system, as he deliberately performed his stunt in front of the judge, the “sudden disappearance” of Hasanah entirely from the court was clearly more serious. She should not be allowed to walk away scot-free without any punishment. As the former head of the intelligence agency, it’s laughable that she didn’t know her court appointment.

It was an afterthought that her lawyer cooked up the lame excuse that the powerful former director-general of MEIO – equivalent of the CIA – had forgotten to attend her case management in court but remember to recite Quran like a good Muslim at home. She should be denied bail, locked up and dressed up in orange until his trial is completed.

But stealing money belonging to the government, when the Najib government was crumbling, was not her only expertise. Jane Bond “Hasanah”, arguably the most powerful woman in the intelligence community due to her extraordinary close relationship with Mr. Najib, was responsible for sending a letter to the U.S. CIA soliciting for support for his former boss.

The chief of now-defunct MEIO, a covert intelligence agency, had committed acts of treason when she invited CIA, a foreign authority, to interfere in Malaysia’s domestic affairs. The scandalous confidential letter dated May 4, 2018, just 5 days before the general election, was sent seeking the U.S. support for the Najib regime even if it wins the election “by a simple majority or just one seat.”

In the same letter, she also accused Mahathir Mohamad, who led the Pakatan Harapan coalition to oust the previous Barisan Nasional government led by Najib Razak, as being anti-West, anti-Semitic, autocratic and using force to silence dissent, as well as having total disregard for human rights and the law.

When the letter was first leaked, the not so intelligent Hasanah lodged a police report and wanted the police to investigate the whistle-blower because the letter falls under the Official Secrets Act (OSA) – indirectly confirmed the existence and authenticity of the “top secret” letter. She tried to make it look like a critical breach of national security instead.

Her lawyer, Shaharudin Ali, was so dumb that he told all and sundry that MEIO employed over 1,000 agents and officers worldwide, a disclosure that should not be disclosed in the spy or intelligence business. Najib, on the other hand, played his usual “I don’t know” and “I’m not aware” cards, denying any knowledge whatsoever of the damning letter written to CIA director Gina Haspel.

 

Subsequently, Hasanah was arrested for helping herself to cash while she was transporting some money to a secret location, after the Barisan Nasional government lost the May 9th general election. She was charged under Section 23 of the MACC Act for the abuse of power for gratification. Her deputy, along with six others from the same office, were also arrested in relation to the missing money.

Like former deputy PM Zahid Hamidi, Hasanah Abdul Hamid is a flight risk. The judiciary should not take the risk of letting the despicable spy woman loose on the streets, especially after her absence in court today. She should be the last person to ignore the rule of law. If a thug like Jamal Yunos had succeeded in fleeing the country to Indonesia, so can Jane Bond Hasanah.

SARAWAK REPORT