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KUALA LUMPUR: The funds seized from Pekan Umno and the Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) during the 1MDB investigations have been returned by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission.
The agency returned RM700,000 to Pekan Umno and RM188,138 to SUPP. The money, allegedly linked to 1MDB, had been transferred from the personal bank account of former Prime Minister Najib Razak.
MACC Prosecutor Abdul Rashid Sulaiman told the High Court today that the prosecution is withdrawing its request to stay an earlier court decision by dismissing MACC’s request to confiscate the seized funds.
The request for forfeiture was rejected because MACC had not proven that the RM700,000 seized from Pekan Um was not the product of illegal activity.
Judge Ahmad Shahrir Mohd Salleh said that Pekan Umno had stated that he had fully spent the 700,000 ringgit to cover the costs of utilities, purchase of equipment and other payments. The balance shown on the account did not originate from Najib’s accounts.
Shahrir also maintained that MACC had not presented sufficient evidence to support its request for a confiscation order to be granted.
In June last year, MACC chief commissioner, then Latheefa Koya, said that the agency had filed a civil forfeiture lawsuit against 41 respondents for losing around RM270 million allegedly linked to the 1MDB fund scandal and received by respondents from Najib.
