PUTRAJAYA: Justice Abu Bakar Jais is leading a three-member bench in the prosecution’s appeal to reinstate Muar MP Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman’s conviction on charges of criminal breach of trust (CBT), misappropriation of property, and money laundering linked to RM1.12 million belonging to Bersatu Youth.
Justice Abu Bakar Jais is also Court of Appeal president, the second-highest ranking position after chief justice.
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Justices Ruzima Ghazali and Collin Lawrence Sequerah, who were elevated to the Federal Court last week, are the other two members of the bench.
The composition of judges hearing an appeal is only made known on the day of the proceeding.
The prosecution, led by Wan Shahruddin Wan Ladin, will make its oral submissions today, arguing that the three-member Court of Appeal bench which acquitted Syed Saddiq erred in law and fact.
Syed Saddiq’s legal team, led by Hisyam Teh Poh Teik, is expected to make its rebuttal submission and defend the Court of Appeal judgment tomorrow.
The Court of Appeal unanimously acquitted Syed Saddiq on June 25, setting aside his conviction and sentence of seven years’ imprisonment, two strokes of the rotan and a fine imposed by the Kuala Lumpur High Court in 2023.
In allowing the former youth and sports minister’s appeal, Justice Noorin Badaruddin said the appellant should have been acquitted without his defence being called during the trial.
A day later, the Attorney-General’s Chambers filed an appeal at the Federal Court against the decision. The prosecution submitted its petition of appeal on Sept 22.
The High Court had in November 2023 found Syed Saddiq guilty of abetting in CBT involving more than RM1 million belonging to Bersatu Youth, as well as another count of dishonestly misappropriating property totalling more than RM120,000, also belonging to the wing.
The former Bersatu Youth chief was also convicted on two counts of money laundering for transferring a total of RM100,000 to his personal account from a company linked to the youth wing, Armada Bumi Bersatu Enterprise.
He was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment and one stroke of the rotan on the CBT charge, two years and another stroke of the rotan on the misappropriation charge, and a further two-year jail term for each of the money laundering offences.
The Muda founder was also fined RM10 million.
