Mohamed Zaini Mazlan said Tengku Adnan, better known as Ku Nan, had maintained during his trial that he was a man of means.

Zaini said he accepted Ku Nan’s contention that he did not intend to brag when declaring that but merely wanted to assert that RM2 million was not an amount that would entice him.

However, the judge said, in his opinion, RM2 million was a substantial amount, even for a millionaire.

“It is fallacious to think that a wealthy person is incapable of committing wrong for financial gains,” Zaini said in his judgment.

Ku Nan, a businessman before joining politics, was sentenced to a year’s jail and fined RM2 million after he was found guilty of accepting RM2 million from businessman Chai Kin Kong four years ago.

The Putrajaya MP, who gave evidence from the stand when told to enter his defence, had said he did not personally benefit from the RM2 million given by Chai to his company, Tadmansori Holdings Sdn Bhd, as the money was meant as a “political donation”.

He said the money was meant to help Umno in the Kuala Kangsar and Sungai Besar by-elections on June 18, 2016.

“With humility, I wish to state that I did not need the RM2 million money for myself. RM2 million is just like my pocket money.

“Before I joined the Cabinet in 2001 at the request of the then prime minister, I was a successful businessman and was involved in various businesses, such as real estate, logging, manufacturing, trading, agriculture, hotel, livestock and food,” he had said.

Ku Nan also failed to convince the court to hold in-camera proceedings to reveal the amount of assets he owned as the information was confidential.

Zaini, in his 87-page judgment today, said he was unable to accept that Ku Nan alone was entrusted to raise funds for the two by-elections as these constituencies were not in his domain as the then chairman of Umno and Barisan Nasional Federal Territories chairman.

“He was furthermore not the treasurer (of Umno) as claimed. I am also disinclined to accept the testimonies of Rizalman and Zakaria …” the judge said.

Rizalman Mokhtar, a former Sungai Besar by-election machinery director, and Zakaria Dullah, the then Simpang Renggam Umno division chief, were among six defence witnesses who gave evidence.

Zaini said, in his opinion, their testimonies were concocted after the event in an attempt to bolster the defence of the accused.

He said it was undoubtedly apparent that the RM2 million given by Chai remained in Tadmansori’s account for the benefit of the accused.

He said there was also no evidence that Ku Nan had withdrawn money from the account to pay for the expenses of the two by-elections, even if he (the judge) were to accept that Rizalman and Zakaria had received cash from the accused.

“That he allegedly advanced slightly more than RM2 million for the by-elections was an afterthought.

“It is therefore established that the accused used Tadmansori as a facade to receive the fruits of his crime,” he added.