Justice Hasbullah Adam also reduced the fine imposed by the Shah Alam sessions court on Oct 19, 2022, against Azmil Muntapha Abas, 50, from RM25,000 to RM12,000 for the offence following his appeal.
However, Hasbullah rejected Azmil’s appeal to set aside his conviction, stating that there was no merit to interfere with the lower court’s findings and decision in the case.
“Therefore, the conviction is upheld,” Hasbullah said in his grounds of judgment on Friday.
He said the charge Azmil faced, under Section 165 of the Penal Code for accepting a bribe in his capacity as a public officer, provided for a maximum two-year jail term or a fine or both. The section, however, does not provide for mandatory imprisonment.
“The key element of the offence was receiving a valuable item without reciprocity. This is different from the main offence under Section 17(a) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act, which provides for a maximum of 20 years in jail and a fine of five times the amount of gratification,” he said.
Hasbullah said the court also took into account the role of the fourth prosecution witness, Shah Alam High Court deputy registrar Ahmad Feisal Azmi, who induced the accused into accepting the bribe.
“It was the active role of SP4 (Feisal) who ensured that the giving (of the money) took place,” he said, adding that the court also took into consideration Azmil’s 17-year service from 2001 to 2018.
Azmil was charged under Section 17(a) of the MACC Act and an alternative charge under Section 165 of the Penal Code.
In October 2022, trial judge Rasyihah Ghazali found that the prosecution had proven its case beyond reasonable doubt under the alternative charge.
The bribe was paid in connection with a case involving six foreigners who were charged under subsection 9(1) of the Common Gaming Houses Act 1953 (Act 289), but were sentenced only to a fine by Azmil who was the presiding judge at the Kuala Kubu Baru sessions court at the time.
The court heard that Azmil had received the money on May 10, 2018, from Feisal via a bank account held at Maybank, Jalan Meru, Klang.