Zizie Izette admitted receiving RM2.8 million as introduction fee, MACC officer tells court

The Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court was told yesterday that Zizie Izette Abdul Samad had admitted to receiving an introduction fee of RM2.8 million from a unit trust consultant for recommending that her husband, Kinabatangan MP Bung Moktar Radin, get Felcra to invest in Public Mutual Berhad unit trusts.

Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) investigating officer Mohd Haris Ibrahim, 42, said Zizie stated that she had received the sum from Norhaili Ahmad Mokhtar while MACC was recording her statement on July 27, 2016.

“I do not remember how many times Zizie Izette stated the matter (RM2.8 million introduction fee), but it was in the recording,” he said when cross-examined by Zizie’s lawyer, K Kumaraendran, in the hearing of the corruption case involving Bung and Zizie over a Felcra investment in Public Mutual Berhad unit trusts.

In previous proceedings, Norhaili told the court that Zizie was eligible to receive an introduction fee of RM2.8 million because she had managed to get her husband to obtain Felcra’s approval to invest RM150 million in Public Mutual unit trusts.

Haris, the 27th prosecution witness, said Zizie’s recorded statements were handed over to him by another MACC officer.

The MACC senior superintendent also agreed with the suggestion by Bung’s lawyer M Athimulan that Zizie’s statements were recorded according to Section 30 (3)(b) of the MACC Act 2009, and that the introduction fee was mentioned in the recording.

When re-examined by deputy public prosecutor Law Chin How about why the couple’s statements were recorded under Section 30 (3)(b) of the MACC Act 2009, Haris said the statements were recorded as witness statements because no arrests were made against them.

According to Haris, he completed the investigation paper and submitted the recommendation to the prosecution to charge Bung and Zizie in court.

On May 3, 2019, Bung, 64, pleaded not guilty to two charges of accepting bribes amounting to RM2.2 million and RM262,500 as an inducement to obtain Felcra’s approval to invest RM150 million in Public Mutual unit trusts.

Bung, who was the non-executive chairman of Felcra at the time, was accused of accepting bribes from an investment agent, Madhi Abdul Hamid, through Zizie at Public Bank’s Taman Melawati branch between 12.30pm and 5pm on June 12, 2015.

He also pleaded not guilty to accepting an RM335,500 cash bribe from Norhaili under the name of Zizie for similar reasons, at the same place on June 19, 2015, while Zizie, 44, pleaded not guilty to three charges of abetting her husband in the matter at the same place, date and time.

The hearing before judge Rozina Ayob continues on May 17.