KUALA LUMPUR: Former Sabah chief minister Tan Sri Musa Aman pleaded not guilty to 16 new money-laundering charges involving more than US$37.8 million (RM154 million) and S$2.5 million (RM7.5 million).
Musa said: “I understand the charge, I claim trial” to each charge read to him before judge Rozina Ayob.
According to the first charge, he had allegedly instructed one Richard Christopher Barnes, 67, to open a UBS AG Singapore bank account under the name Richard Christopher Barnes to receive proceeds from illicit activities.
He also faced an alternative count to the first charge of allegedly ordering Barnes to open the account to purportedly hide proceeds from illicit activities.
The offences were allegedly committed at UBS AG Singapore Bank on June 21, 2006.
According to the second to 15th counts, Musa was accused of receiving US$16,148,547 and US$1,047,153 from one Chia Tien Foh, US$2,702,702 and US$2,180,673 from Young Generation Corp, US$4,044,956.82 from one Lo Man Heng, US$518, 681.74 and US$ 895,000 from one Mazlan Zakaria, US$7,300,000 and S$2,500,000 from Axon Group Ltd, US$862,000, US$778, 443 and US$311,332.50 from Well Capital Finance Ltd, US$650,000 from Innovative Information Ltd, and US$406,003.29 from Portland Trading Pte Ltd through Barnes’ bank account.
Meanwhile on the 16th count, he was alleged to have instructed Barnes to transfer all assets and future inflows, which were proceeds from illicit activities from Barnes’ bank account to his personal account at UBS AG Bank in Zurich, Switzerland.
The offences were all allegedly committed at UBS AG Bank in Hong Kong, China, between June 21, 2006, and May 14, 2008.
Prior to this, Musa was already accused of 35 counts of corruption involving US$63.3 million in connection with timber concession contracts in Sabah.
All the charges under Section 4(1)(a) of the Anti-Money Laundering and Anti-Terrorism Financing Act 2001, carry imprisonment of up to 15 years and a fine of not less than five times the amount of illegal proceeds, or RM5 million, whichever is higher, if convicted.
Deputy public prosecutor Datuk Raja Rozela Raja Toran did not offer bail and applied for the case to be tried together with the accused’s previous case.
Meanwhile, Musa’s counsel Francis Ng Aik Guan told the court that his client had received a letter from the Independent Commission Against Corruption of Hong Kong (ICAC) dated Dec 22, 2018.
The letter stated the commission had completed its investigation on Musa and that the vice-commissioner agreed that no further investigations would be conducted.
“We just want to indicate to the court that this is a precursor of what we will be applying at the High Court,” he added.
Rozina then asked the defence to file a proper application.
She also allowed the prosecution’s application for a joint trial of the case and the previous one.
Musa’s previous bail was maintained and his case will be up for mention on April 15.