Umno receipt for RM2mil was not forged, Ku Nan’s lawyers say

KUALA LUMPUR: Lawyers defending Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor in his corruption case told the High Court here that the Umno official receipt for RM2mil issued to Tan Sri Chai Kin Kong was not a forged document.

Datuk Tan Hock Chuan, who is leading the defence team, said the suggestion by the prosecution that the receipt was a forgery was totally untenable as it had always been in the possession of Chai, director of Aset Kayamas Sdn Bhd (AKSB).

“It is not disputed that my client received the cheque from Tan Sri Chai, who is also the 19th prosecution witness a few days before the Kuala Kangsar and Sungai Besar by-elections which were held on June 18, 2016.

“Tan Sri Chai received the Umno official receipt around June 14, 2016,” Tan said.

He said Chai in his evidence had said that the receipt was kept in his wallet.

Tan, who made the argument at the end of defence case, submitted that Chai, the star prosecution witness, was a truthful and reliable witness.

“There is no suggestion by the prosecution that Tan Sri Chai was dishonest and untruthful. His evidence was clear and consistent,” the lawyer said.

Tan further said during cross-examination of the accused (Tengku Adnan), the prosecution suggested that the receipt for RM2mil was a forged document.

He said the Umno receipt issued to Chai for the cheque was given to Umno as a political donation for expenses in the Kuala Kangsar and Sungai Besar by-elections.

He said another prosecution witness, Farahdzilah Abd Kadir, deputy chief of the Financial Management Department at Umno headquarters, had testified that the receipt and receipt book were used at random and the receipt book was accessible to many parties.

“This could explain why the dates in the receipt book did not follow the sequence,” Tan said.

Tan said based on Tengku Adnan’s witness statement, he said if the donation was made to the state Umno, the receipt would be handled by the state Umno, not by the Umno headquarters.

He said the Umno receipt books were usually kept at the party’s headquarters.

“Tengku Adnan said the staff of the finance department and administration department at the party headquarters had access to those official receipt books.

“There is no strict control of the official receipt books, so other staff also had access to those official receipt books,” Tan added.

He further submitted that when the accused received the RM2mil cheque from Chai on June 14, 2016, it was very close to the date of the by-elections, June 18, 2016.

“It is logical that Tan Sri Chai received the receipt on or about June 14, 2016,” he said, adding that the prosecution failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt that the receipt was a forged document.

Tengku Adnan, 69, also known as Ku Nan, was charged in his capacity as a public servant, namely, the Federal Territories minister then, with having accepted for himself RM2mil from Chai via a Hong Leong Islamic Bank cheque belonging to AKSB, which was later deposited into the CIMB Bank account of Tadmansori Holdings in which he had an interest, when it was known that Aset Kayamas had connection with his official duties.