Prasarana COO claims trial to receiving bribe

GEORGE TOWN: A Prasarana Bhd chief operating officer claimed trial at the Sessions Court here yesterday to a charge of accepting RM70,000 bribe.

Mohd Shukri Abdul Rahman, 54, was charged with taking the bribe from Jayonik MSC Sdn Bhd, which was credited into a bank account under the name of Nor Jasmin Mustafa, in return for issuing an appointment letter to the company for a project worth RM8,404,675.13, while acting as an agent of Prasarana.

He was charged under Section 17(a) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Act (MACC) 2009, which carries a jail term up to 20 years and fine up to five times the amount of the bribe or RM10,000, whichever is higher.

Shukri pleaded not guilty to the charge read out to him before judge Norsalha Hamzah.

MACC deputy public prosecutor Ahmad Ghazali Muhamad Nadzri asked the court to set bail at RM100,000 as the offence was of a serious nature.

However, Shukri’s lawyer, Datuk Shukri Mohamad, asked for the bail to be set at RM40,000, an amount his client was capable of paying.

“My client is a kidney disease patient and is undergoing haemodialysis.

“He has to support his wife and two children, one of whom is schooling. My client was also detained by MACC for 14 days, and after his arrest, he had cooperated with the commission throughout the investigation of the case,” he said.

He added that Shukri had been suspended from his position in Prasarana since his arrest.

“Since this is a complex case, the defence team will also need to consult with our client to receive instruction from time to time.”

The lawyer said his client would also be charged at the courts in Kuantan next week.

Ahmad then interjected and said that the prosecution would be applying for this case to be heard in Kuantan together with the other case.

Norsalha allowed bail at RM50,000 and set Aug 16 for mention.