KUALA TERENGGANU: A senior administrative officer from the Terengganu Islamic religious affairs department pleaded not guilty in the sessions court here today to 24 counts of abuse of power by awarding departmental vehicle repair work to his wife’s company two years ago.
Ali Embong, 60, made the plea after the charges were read out to him before judge Azhar Othman.
He was charged with using his position to recommend the servicing, repairing and maintenance of department vehicles valued at more than RM24,000 to his wife’s company, Kerjasama Servis Trading.
The offences were allegedly committed between October and December 2022 at the department’s offices, and framed under Section 23(1) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act 2009.
If found guilty, Ali can be punished under Section 24 of the same Act, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years imprisonment and a fine of at least five times the value of the gratification or RM10,000, whichever is higher.
The court granted Ali bail of RM20,000 on all charges in one surety. He was also ordered to surrender his passport to the court, refrain from interfering with prosecution witnesses, and told to report to the nearest MACC office every month until the case is resolved.
The judge then set July 10 for case management.
The prosecution was handled by MACC deputy public prosecutor Aznika Anas while Ali was represented by lawyer Nur Ain Rani from the National Legal Aid Foundation. - FMT
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