JOHOR BARU: A 63-year-old former executive officer of a logistics and transportation company in Pasir Gudang claimed trial to three counts of committing criminal breach of trust involving RM864,000 at the Sessions Court here today.
Chan Foo Chin was accused to have misused his administrative powers to siphon the company's fund, at which time he was entrusted to manage.
He had approved the fund's withdrawal on the pretext of using it as payment settlement for a cargo port transfer service, or in industrial terms known as a shunting service.
Chan was accused of committing the first offence on February 27, 2009 at his Pasir Gudang office in Jalan Keluli 12 when he approved the issuance of a company cheque amounting to RM288,000 as work payment to a Syarikat Konsortium Logistic Berhad for carrying out shunting works at three different companies for a period of 12 months even though the accused had in his knowledge at the time of offence that his company was not liable to make any payment for the shunting service.
Chan was also accused of committing the same offence on Feb 28, 2010 and May 11, 2012.
He was charged under Section 409 of the Penal Code for criminal breach of trust, which is punishable with a jail term of not less than 2 years and not more than 20 years and liable to a fine and whipping upon conviction.
Chan nodded when asked whether if he understands the charges after they were read out to him before he pleaded not guilty to all three charges.
Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission Deputy Public Prosecutor Khazrin Hafiz Halil requested for Judge Mohd Fauzi Mohd Nasir to set bail at RM200,000 and for the accused to surrender his passport.
Counsel Sukaimi Maskot, who was representing Chan, asked for a lower bail as he said Chan is no longer working at the transportation company and earned his living by helping his friends with a monthly salary of about RM3,000.
"His wife is not working and he has two other dependents in his family," Sukaimi said.
Fauzi then fixed bail at RM150,000 for all the three counts and ordered Chan to surrender his passport to the court.
Fauzi also set Feb 27 for mention for the case.