The Court of Appeal will decide later on an appeal by Lim Guan Eng, his wife, and a businesswoman to dismiss their RM11.6 million graft and money laundering charges.
PUTRAJAYA: The Court of Appeal today reserved its judgment on an appeal by former Penang chief minister Lim Guan Eng, his wife Betty Chew, and businesswoman Phang Li Koon to strike out their corruption and money laundering charges.
A three-member bench led by Judge Datuk Azman Abdullah deferred its decision after hearing submissions from all parties, with a case management set for April 27 to fix the decision date.
The trio are appealing a Penang High Court decision from May 3, 2024, which dismissed their application to have the charges thrown out.
They had filed the application in May 2023, arguing the prosecution was relying on evidence from a previous case involving Lim’s bungalow purchase, for which he was acquitted and discharged in 2018.
Phang’s counsel, Datuk Seri V. Sithambaram, submitted that it was an abuse of process to file charges based on offences connected to that first proceeding.
He argued the current charges over a foreign workers’ hostel project could have been brought in the earlier case, as the issues, facts, and evidence now relied upon were part of the first proceeding.
Counsel RSN Rayer, representing Lim and Chew, adopted Sithambaram’s submissions.
Deputy public prosecutor Ashrof Adrin Kamarul countered that the facts in the two proceedings were not the same, but were new facts discovered after investigations continued following the 2016 acquittal.
He submitted that the rule against double jeopardy did not apply as the offences, though under the same law, were two distinct offences based on different facts.
Lim is accused of using his position as chief minister to receive a bribe of RM372,009 for his wife in connection with a RM11.6 million workers’ hostel project awarded to Magnificent Emblem Sdn Bhd.
He faces a charge under Section 23(1) of the MACC Act 2009, which carries a maximum 20-year jail term and a fine.
Phang is charged with allegedly conspiring with Lim to commit the offence.
Chew faces three money laundering charges for allegedly receiving the RM372,009 sum into her bank account.
The corruption case has yet to begin at the Penang High Court.