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1st September, 2010
KOTA KINABALU: Former commander of the Fifth Brigade of Sabah Datuk Muhamad Yassin Yahya has been freed of a perjury charge.
Sessions Court judge Caroline Bee Majanil discharged and acquitted the 62-year-old yesterday after finding the prosecution had failed to establish a prima facie case against him for providing false evidence at the graft trial of former Sabah Police Commissioner Datuk Ramli Yusoff two years ago.
Muhammad Yasin was accused of giving false evidence as a witness in the Sessions Court here in 2008 at a hearing in which Ramli, 58, was charged with abusing his public office by unauthorized use of a Royal Malaysian Police aircraft for pecuniary gains three years ago.
At the trial, Ramli was alleged to have used the aircraft to take him and Muhamad Yassin and another civilian on an aerial surveillance of two lots land in Ulu Tungku, Lahad Datu in which his real estate company, Kinsajaya Sdn Bhd, had an interest. The offence was allegedly committed at the Sabah Police Air Unit in Tanjung Aru on June 15, 2007 and on July 27 last year Ramli was acquitted of the charge.
Muhammad Yassin allegedly gave statements in Ramli’s 2008 trial then that were inconsistent with statements recorded by the ACA officers in Kota Kinabalu and Melaka in 2007 and 2008 respectively, as well as a police report made at IPD Karamunsing on Jan 19, 2007.
He was said to testify in court that since receiving a letter of offer for two pieces of land in Ulu Tungku, Lahad Datu, he, Ramli and some friends had gone to visit the place but could not locate the exact location of the said land.
His statement apparently contradicted a recorded statement he made in front of an ACA officer at the Kota Kinabalu ACA office on Aug 6, 2007.
In his statement, Muhamad Yasin said after receiving a letter of offer from the Land and Survey Office, together with Ramli and two others they “had gone to survey the lots for the first time” using a four-wheel drive in early 2007.
Then, in another statement made at the ACA office in Melaka on Sept 8, 2008, the former commander was believed to have told an officer that “the three of us had gone to Dent Haven (where the land was located) on Nov 25, 2006 to view the land after getting a letter of offer from the Land and Survey Department”.
Additionally, in a police report made on Jan 19, 2007 at the IPD Karamunsing, Muhamad Yassin allegedly said in his statement that he “had a piece of land in Ulu Tungku, Lahad Datu around Dent Haven and that the land had been encroached by illegal immigrants.”
Muhammad Yassin was charged under Section 19(2) of the Anti-Corruption Act 1997 and punishable under the same Act. If convicted he may be jailed not more than ten years or fined RM100,000 or both.
In the April and June trial this year more than ten witnesses were called by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) to the stand.
Yesterday, prosecuting officer Joyce Blasius said MACC will appeal against the Session Court’s decision at the High Court.
Muhammad Yasin was represented by counsel Natasha Balakrishnan.
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