Umno's Lokman acquitted of Covid-19 fake news charges

The Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court today discharged and acquitted Umno Supreme Council member Lokman Noor Adam of two charges of spreading false news on his Facebook page regarding the entry of Indian nationals spreading Covid-19 virus and the death of a police officer due to vaccination, in April and May 2021.

Judge Nor Hasniah Ab Razak made the decision after finding that the defence had succeeded in raising reasonable doubts about the case against Lokman, 50, under Section 4 (1) of the Emergency (Essential Powers) (No. 2) Ordinance 2021, at the end of the case prosecution.

"The prosecution failed to establish a prima facie case against the accused. The court hereby orders that the accused be acquitted and discharged of the charges he faced. The security deposit (RM20,000) is returned," she said.

On Oct 1, 2021, Lokman pleaded not guilty to two charges of spreading false news through audio-visual recordings about the entry of Indian nationals into Malaysia which was the cause of the spread of the Covid-19 virus and the death of a police officer linked to the vaccine.

The information which was disseminated through Facebook under the profile name "Lokman Adam" with the intention of causing public uneasiness, was allegedly carried out at 10.38 pm, April 9 and 10.55 pm, May 3, 2021.

The two recordings were then seen at the office of the Cyber and Multimedia Crime Investigation Division, Commercial Crime Investigation Department, Bukit Aman police headquarters, floor 27, Menara KPJ, Kuala Lumpur at 8.55 pm, April 11 and 4.40 pm, May 9, 2021.

Both offences are charged under Section 4 (1) of the Emergency (Essential Powers) (No.2) Ordinance 2021 which provides for a maximum fine of RM100,000 or a maximum imprisonment of three years or both if convicted.

The prosecution was handled by deputy public prosecutor Kalmizah Salleh while Lokman was represented by lawyer Logen Eskander.

When met by the media outside the court after the proceedings, Lokman who attended the court wearing a blue baju Melayu thanked the judge and the court that heard his case as well as the lawyer who represented him.

"With my acquittal from this charge, it means as my lawyer argued, none of my testimony contradicts the facts or as people say, is not true," said Lokman.