KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 20): The Sessions Court on Wednesday acquitted Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia's (Bersatu) Segambut deputy division chief Adam Radlan Adam Muhammad of the 12 charges of corruption and money laundering against him in relation to the Jana Wibawa programme.
This is after he paid a RM4.1 million compound over the money-laundering charges on Monday (Aug 18).
Deputy public prosecutor (DPP) Farah Yasmin Salleh, who appeared with DPP Fadhly Zamry, told the court that the prosecution had accepted Adam Radlan’s second representation letter, where he offered to pay the compound under Section 92(1) of the Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act 2001 (AMLA).
Farah then sought a discharge not amounting to an acquittal (DNAA). However, Adam Radlan’s counsel Datuk Seri Rajan Navaratnam told Sessions Court judge Suzana Hussin that a full acquittal was warranted since the compound had been paid.
After hearing submissions from the prosecution and defence, Suzana granted an acquittal.
When contacted separately by The Edge, DPP Farah Yasmin and Rajan confirmed the outcome of Wednesday’s proceedings.
Adam Radlan, 44, was charged with one count of soliciting a cash bribe of between 3.5% and 7% of a road construction project worth RM47.8 million, from Mat Jusoh Mamat, the managing director of MIE Infrastructure & Energy Sdn Bhd.
He was also charged with soliciting RM2 million in bribes from Lian Tan Chuan to help Lian’s company Nepturis Sdn Bhd to obtain a contract in the Klang Utara district for its head office from the government, worth RM141 million.
The third charge stated that Adam Radlan allegedly received RM2.1 million from Mat Jusoh for a separate roadwork project from Jalan Sg Adam to Kg Banat, Perlis, which cost RM47.8 million.
Adam Radlan was also charged with another count of accepting a bribe of RM500,000 from Mat Jusoh as an inducement to help the company secure the same project, which spanned from Jalan Sungai Adam to Kampung Banat in Perlis, from the government through direct negotiations.
He also faced two counts of receiving RM4.1 million in bribes from Lian Tan Chuan and Mat Jusoh for helping Nepturis and MIE obtain two similar Jana Wibawa projects, and one count of soliciting RM2 million from Lian, as an inducement to help Nepturis secure another Jana Wibawa project.
All the charges were framed under Section 16(a)(A) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act 2009 and would have been punishable by up to 20 years in prison, and a fine of not less than five times the amount of the bribe, or RM10,000, whichever is higher, upon conviction.
He also faced seven money-laundering charges amounting to more than RM3 million under Section 4(1)(b) of AMLA.
The offences were allegedly committed around Kuala Lumpur and Petaling Jaya between March 2021 and January 2023.
If he had been found guilty, he would have faced a maximum of 15 years' jail time and a fine of not less than five times the sum of the unlawful activity or RM5 million, whichever is the higher, for each money-laundering charge.
Jana Wibawa, or Program Jana Ekonomi Pemerkasaan Kontraktor Bumiputera Berwibawa, was mooted during the Perikatan Nasional administration, in which Bersatu was a component party.
The then-government said the programme was set up to improve the capacity of Bumiputera contractors in the construction industry, as well as to expedite project roll-outs to spur the nation’s economic recovery post Covid-19.