A former Sabah minister has denied receiving RM500,000 in cash at his Infrastructure Development Ministry office in September 2005.
The denial came during a trial at the Sessions Court, where witness Datuk Raymond Tan, 66, responded to questions from lawyer Datuk Ansari Abdullah.
The trial involves Sabah Water Department (JANS) former director Ag Tahir Mohd Talib, his wife Fauziah Ag Piut, and former deputy director Lim Lam Beng, who face multiple charges of money laundering totaling RM61.57 million and unlawful possession of luxury goods between October and November 2016.
Ansari questioned whether former Kota Kinabalu divisional water engineer Teo Chee Kong and Lim had offered part of an agreed allocation to Tan after collecting quotations from the department in the second quarter of 2005.
Tan described Teo’s visit, accompanied by a senior officer, as standard procedure and denied any knowledge of the alleged cash handover. He said he had only instructed Teo to ensure uninterrupted water supply in the central business district.
When asked, “Is it true that Teo, on or about September 2005, prepared and handed over to you, in the presence of Lim, a cash sum of RM500,000 in your office?” Tan replied:
“That is not true. In the ministry, we do not allow visitors to bring gifts for the minister. There is a standard guideline from the Prime Minister that ministers should not accept any gifts. If Teo had brought money, it would have been noticed by the security officers.”
Tan also testified that he had no knowledge of a so-called “centralised collection scheme” outlined in Exhibit P127, which purportedly detailed allocations from contract works to various individuals and departments, including the ministry under his purview.
Regarding the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) raids in 2016 linked to the case, Tan said he first learned of them through newspaper reports and confirmed that MACC had never recorded a statement from him.
The trial is being handled by Deputy Public Prosecutors Mahadi Abdul Jumaat, Haresh Prakash Somiah, and Zander Lim.
Lim is represented by lawyers Datuk Tan Hock Chuan, Baldev Singh, and Kelvin Wong, while Ag Tahir and Fauziah are represented by Ansari and Erveana Ansari.
