The country’s top prosecutor has lodged police reports against Raja Petra Kamarudin for defamation over an article the blogger wrote where he alleged Apandi was involved in corruption.
Attorney-General Tan Sri Mohamed Apandi Ali lodged a report in Kuantan on Oct 22, with a separate report lodged by his office in Putrajaya the same day.
Apandi said he was in Kuala Terengganu when he first read the article.
“The report was made in Kuantan, but since I first read the article in Kuala Terengganu, so the police classified it as a Kuala Terengganu report.
“However, I have been informed that Bukit Aman has taken over the investigations.
“I will leave it to the police to investigate the matter, and since I am the complainant, the investigation paper will be handled by one of my officers,” he told the Sun yesterday.
He also said he would consult lawyers in the UK, where Raja Petra is currently residing.
In an article titled ‘Strong Rumours Surrounding The AG: Part 1’ on Oct 20, Raja Petra had alleged that Apandi was involved in corruption, and accused him of getting his A-G job through inappropriate means.
Apandi strongly denied Raja Petra’s allegations of corruption and how he landed the A-G’s post, adding he will sue the blogger “till kingdom come”.
“I am seriously going to sue and am consulting my lawyer friends in the UK. This is nothing but fake news done with evil intention,” Apandi was quoted as saying.
Raja Petra shot back in a second article when he questioned which part of his article was fake.
“Many things were said in that article so Apandi needs to clarify which part is fake if he thinks it is fake,” the blogger said.
The investigation is being conducted under Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 and Section 500 of the Penal Code for defamation.
Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 deals with improper use of network facilities or network service. It carries a punishment of a fine not exceeding RM50,000 or a year’s jail, or both, on conviction.
Anyone found guilty under Section 500 of the Penal Code can be punished with imprisonment of up to two years or with a fine, or with both.
Raja Petra had written in the first article about an alleged meeting in 2015 between then chief justice Arifin Zakaria, current chief justice Md Raus Shariff and current Court of Appeal president Zulkefli Ahmad Makinudin with Prime Minister Najib Razak.
The meeting was about a purported plot by then attorney-general Abdul Gani Patail with some others to topple Najib through investigations on 1MDB.
Raja Petra had also alleged that Apandi had demanded RM4 million from a Chinese businessman, identified as a “business partner” of the Sultan of Johor, on a case he had won.
The blogger is living in exile in the UK after fleeing sedition and criminal defamation charges in Malaysia in 2006 over stories he published linking Prime Minister Najib Razak and wife to the murder of Mongolian model and translator Altantuya Shaariibuu.