Sandakan businessman acquitted of cheating on appeal

KOTA KINABALU: A Sandakan businessman was yesterday discharged and acquitted by the Court of Appeal here of a cheating conviction involving RM2.5 million in a timber scandal that took place over 10 years ago.

The appellant, Michael Chia Thien Foh, was freed after Justices Dato' Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat, Datuk Dr Prasad Sandosham Abraham and Dato' Zabariah Mohd Yusof unanimously quashed the order of conviction handed down by the lower court, citing that it is not safe to convict the appellant.

The issues raised by the appellant included who had been deceived and whether or not the company was deceived by the appellant, who had no link to them.

Previously, the appellant was ordered to serve one year in prison with one stroke of the cane by the Sessions Court in Sandakan, after he was found guilty under Section 420/511 of the Penal Code.

He was convicted of cheating one Datu Agus Hassan of Syarikat Peluamas in June 2004, by deceiving him into believing that there were three conditions that had to be fulfilled in order to obtain a letter concerning log operations of coupe BW12/02: Extraction and Purchasing of Commercial Timber at the Kalabakan Forest Reserve.

The conditions included: (i) To surrender back the purchase of 100,000 cubic metres of logs signed on May 25, 2004 to Rakyat Berjaya Sdn Bhd/Innoprise Corporation Sdn Bhd as a write off; (ii) to pay RM3 million for the purpose of political funding for Umno Sabah; and (iii) to pay commission of RM25 per cubic metre to be charged on logs excavated by Syarikat Peluamas Sdn Bhd at Gunung Rara Forest Reserve (Benta Wawasan Coupe).

Michael was represented by counsels Ram Singh and Ronny Cham, while deputy public prosecutor Aida Adhha Abu Bakar appeared for the respondent.