KOTA KINABALU: A woman was fined RM500,000 by the Special Corruption Court here on 50 counts of using fake bank statements to obtain a government tender worth millions for the supply of cooked food.
Rita Pengeran, 31, who appeared before Sessions judge Abu Bakar Manat changed her plea and pleaded guilty to the alternative charges.
The court ordered Rita to pay RM10,000, in default five months' jail, for each charge.
The self-employed woman had used fake bank statements under the names of several companies from 21 individuals which were submitted to the state Education Department here between August 2014 and November 2018.
She committed the offences to get the government tenders for various hostels and schools in several districts around the state between 2016 and 2021.
The alternative charges framed under Section 471 of the Penal Code and punishable under Section 465 of the same Code, carries a jail term of up to two years or a fine, or both, on conviction.
The facts of the case stated that the 21 individuals had leased their business licences to Rita who managed all the processes in getting the tenders.
Rita had paid them between RM1,500 and RM20,000 per month during the period of the contracts.
Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) deputy public prosecutor Nurul Izzati Sapifee prosecuted while counsel Datu Baginda Datu Laja represented Rita.
Rita paid her fines.
The 21 individuals who were charged with abetting Rita in using the fake documents had earlier pleaded guilty and were sentenced accordingly.