The 18th prosecution witness, investigating officer Noor Asyikin Shamsuri, 46, however, said investigations into the senior digital forensic consultant of LGMS Bhd, Hoo Kah Yan, on Nov 11, 2022, revealed that the phone had been sent by Ebit to the company for analysis.

“My investigation found that Hoo had received the mobile phone in good working condition for analysis related to keyword searching, WhatsApp chat extraction and image extraction of the device,” she said while reading her witness statement.

Asyikin said the police sent a formal request letter on Nov 21, 2022, to Ebit’s legal representatives, Messrs Ram Singh & Co, requesting their client to hand over the phone within three days or by Nov 24, 2022, at the latest.

She said on Nov 22, 2022, the police received an email response from the law firm stating that they had contacted Ebit about the mobile phone, but the accused informed them that the device had gone missing after the forensic analysis report on the phone was completed.

Asyikin said on Nov 30, 2022, she, along with two others, Siti Nooraini Sahid and Norfazliyani Zolkapeli, went to the LGMS office to record witness statements and collect evidence, namely the extraction data from Ebit’s mobile phone performed by LGMS.

The prosecution is led by deputy public prosecutors Nor Azizah Mohamad, Analia Kamaruddin and Hidayat Wahab, while Ebit is represented by counsel Ram Singh, Kamarudin Chinki and Prabjit Singh Gill.

Ebit, 39, faces 11 charges, including outraging the modesty of a woman in her 40s by sending obscene words and images via WhatsApp between March and June 2021. He is charged under Section 509 of the Penal Code, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison, a fine, or both, upon conviction.

The trial before magistrate Nur Asyraf Zolhani continues tomorrow.