KUALA LUMPUR: Former Malaysian minister Syed Saddiq Abdul Rahman walked free after the Federal Court on Monday (Jul 13) upheld his acquittal on charges of criminal breach of trust, misappropriation of property and money laundering linked to funds belonging to Armada, the youth wing of his former party – Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu).
The ruling brought an end to the Muar Member of Parliament’s legal battle after the High Court in November 2023 convicted and sentenced him to seven years’ jail, two strokes of the cane and a RM10 million (US$2.45 million) fine.
In a 2-1 majority decision, the Federal Court – which sits at the apex of Malaysia’s judicial system – ruled that the Court of Appeal had correctly overturned Syed Saddiq’s convictions and said there was no reason for further appellate intervention, local media reported.
Two judges on the panel, Justice Che Mohd Ruzima Ghazali and Justice Collin Lawrence Sequerah, formed the majority while the chairperson of the panel, Court of Appeal president Justice Abu Bakar Jais, held the dissenting judgment.
With the majority ruling against him, Abu Bakar acknowledged that his views did not prevail.
“In conclusion, I find no appealable error on the part of the Court of Appeal. Despite all the charges and reasons given above, each of these appeals are dismissed,” Abu Bakar said while reading the majority judgment, as quoted by Malay Mail.
The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission first opened an investigation into the former youth and sports minister in March 2020.
Syed Saddiq, 33, was charged in 2021 with abetting Rafiq Hakim Razali, the former assistant treasurer of Armada in committing criminal breach of trust amounting to over RM1 million, with the alleged offence taking place at a CIMB bank branch in Kuala Lumpur in March 2020.
The founder of the youth-focused Malaysian United Democratic Alliance (MUDA) was also convicted of misappropriation of property totalling more than RM120,000 belonging Armada and two money laundering charges involving RM100,000 transferred to his personal account from a company linked to the youth wing.
The High Court convicted Syed Saddiq on all four charges in 2023 but the Court of Appeal in June last year acquitted him after finding the charges baseless. The prosecution then filed an appeal.