KUALA LUMPUR: Prominent lawyer Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah was freed from two counts of money-laundering related to a RM9.5 million payment he received from former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.
High Court judge Datuk Muhammad Jamil Hussin also acquitted and discharged him from making false declarations to the Inland Revenue Board for not including the RM9.5 million in his tax filing, for the years 2013 and 2014.
Muhammad Jamil in his decision said the prosecution failed to establish a prima facie case against Shafee.
Deputy public prosecutor Afzainizam Abdul Aziz prosecuted the case while Shafee was represented by counsels Harvinderjit Singh, Farhan Read and his son Muhammad Farhan Muhammad Shafee.
A total of eight witnesses were called to testify including AmBank Jalan Raja Chulan branch manager R Uma Devi, CIMB Bank Bukit Tunku branch manager Rosnita Ahmad, former IRB officer Syed Nasrul Fahmi Syed Mohamad, and Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) investigating officer Mohamad Farid Jabar.
Shafee claimed trial to all charges when he was brought to court on Sept 13, 2018.