The charge allegedly not linked to 1MDB.
- Lawyer claims his 61-year-old client “physically weak” and “not able to move like other people”
- Bank accounts frozen
- Passport surrendered
Former director-general of the Research Division in the Prime Minister’s Department, Datuk Hasanah Ab Hamid, pleaded not guilty in the Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court today to a criminal breach of trust (CBT) charge involving US$12.1 million belonging to the Malaysian government.
Hasanah, who was the former head of the Malaysian External Intelligence Organisation (MEIO), made the plea before judge Azman Ahmad.
Hasanah, 61, in her capacity as a civil servant, was charged with committing the offence at the office of the Director-General, Research Division, Prime Minister’s Department (JPM), Kompleks JPM, Federal Government’s Administrative Centre, Putrajaya, between April 30 and May 9, 2018.
The charge was framed under Section 409 of the Penal Code which provides an imprisonment for up to 20 years, and whipping, and is liable to fine, if found guilty.
The prosecution, conducted by deputy public prosecutor Kamal Baharin Omar, offered bail of RM1 million, but lawyer Datuk Shaharudin Ali, representing Hasanah, requested the bail amount to be reduced to RM300,000 on grounds that she was a former director-general of intelligence organisation who had contributed a lot to the country.
Shaharudin also said the charge his client was facing was not linked either to the cases involving former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak and former Treasury secretary-general Tan Sri Irwan Serigar Abdullah, who had been charged in the same court earlier, or the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) case.
“She is a 61-year-old woman, who is physically weak and not able to move like other people. After she was released from remand last Sept 3, she could have fled or hid, but she chooses to remain in Selangor.
“The accused is also a former director-general at JPM who is now publicly known as the country’s key intelligence agent, whose job is similar to the that of the special branch and military intelligence. She had been trained and taught to safeguard the country’s security (as such), she could not have been afraid to flee from the country,” he added.
He also said that all of Hasanah’s bank accounts had been frozen, with her previous salary and pension in it.
“She used to receive RM10,000 a month as pension, but the money has been frozen along with her other bank accounts.”
Kamal Baharin, however, objected to the amount, saying that it was unreasonable considering the amount she was charged for, which was more than RM50 million, although it involved only one charge.
Azman then allowed Hasanah bail of RM500,000 in two sureties and to surrender her passport to the court.
The court fixed Nov 29 for mention.
Speaking to reporters at the Kuala Lumpur Court Complex today, Shaharudin said his team is considering transferring the case to the High Court from the current Sessions Court.
“Basically, Datuk Seri Ram (Gopal Sri Ram), the lead prosecutor, has said that he had no objection if Datuk Hasanah applied for the case to be transferred to the High Court,” he said.
For his defence, Shaharudin said it is unclear whether the US$12.1 million referred to in the charge is from the Malaysian government or from foreign sources, including intelligence agencies from foreign countries. He stressed that if this is the case, the use of those monies should be treated as government classified.
“The utilisation of the money, in my view, should be confidential and not to be disclosed freely in the open court. We have to be careful; covert operations by the country’s intelligence should not simply be played in this court,” he said, adding that internal processes may be required to reveal the flow of funds for intelligence operations.
Meanwhile, he said the High Court’s decision on his challenge against the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission’s notice in August that barred him from seeing his client during the agency’s interrogation will be read tomorrow at 10am.
Separately, prominent lawyer Tan Sri Mohammad Shafee Abdullah described the swiftness of Hasanah’s charges as disturbing.
“There are a lot of national secrets and in fact, national security matters that will be unloaded during her case. I do not know if it is a wise thing to do,” he told reporters at the court complex.
Shafee attended the court as a defence attorney for former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, who was implicated alongside former Treasury secretary-general Tan Sri Mohd Irwan Serigar Abdullah over six counts of CBT involving RM6.64 billion government funds. Both pleaded not guilty.