KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 8): Umno president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s Yayasan Akalbudi case has come to an end with it being reclassified by the Attorney General’s Chambers (AGC) as needing “no further action” (NFA).
The AGC said in a statement on Thursday said the case was dropped due to insufficient evidence after further Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) investigations, following the discharge not amounting to an acquittal (DNAA) on his 47 charges on Sept 4, 2023.
The anti-graft body’s continued probe into the case covered aspects related to the source of funds, methods of acquisition and utilisation of said funds, as well as matters raised by Zahid in six representations submitted to the AGC when the now-deputy prime minister was called to enter his defence.
“After examining the entirety of the materials and new evidence obtained as a result of the further investigations and scrutiny, [the AGC], based on prosecutorial evaluation and consideration, finds the available evidence is insufficient to support the continuation of the prosecution for all the charges,” the AGC said.
“Therefore, [the AGC] has decided that no further action will be taken in relation to the case,” it said.
“This decision consequently brings about the final termination of the case, in line with the powers and discretion of the AG under the Federal Constitution and relevant laws,” it added.
The AGC stressed that the move was taken based on “professional and legal considerations, taking into account the interests of justice, the integrity of the prosecutorial process, as well as the need to ensure certainty and transparency in the criminal justice system”.
Zahid was previously accused of dishonest misappropriation of RM31 million belonging to his charitable foundation, Yayasan Akalbudi. He faced 12 criminal breach of trust charges, eight for graft and 27 for money laundering.
Back in December last year, lawyer Datuk Syed Amir Syakib Arsalan Syed Ibrahim filed a judicial review application with the High Court seeking to direct the AG to either proceed or formally discontinue prosecution against Zahid over the Yayasan Akalbudi case.
Zahid was acquitted of all 40 graft charges pertaining to a foreign visa contract back in 2022. The prosecution withdrew its appeal against the acquittal in December 2024.