KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court heard that Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi received two cheques valued at RM6mil from Datasonic Group Bhd (DGB) deputy managing director Chew Ben Ben, which was then handed over to Messrs Lewis & Co.
Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) investigating officer Mohd Hizar Farhan Abdul Razi, 32, said the cheques were handed over by Chew to Ahmad Zahid at the former deputy prime minister’s official residence in Seri Satria, Putrajaya, in 2017.
The court had been told before this that Lewis & Co was the trustee of the Yayasan Akalbudi owned by Ahmad Zahid.
Based on the 14th and 15th charge, Ahmad Zahid is alleged to have received bribes amounting to RM6mil from Chew as an inducement to appoint Datasonic Technologies Sdn Bhd (DTSB) to implement a five-year passport chip project or 12.5 million chips for the Malaysian passport polycarbonate biodata page for the Immigration Department through direct negotiations under the Home Ministry.
Mohd Hizar Farhan said the cheques were obtained from Chew following a shortage of passport supply in 2016 after DTSB was awarded the passport chip supply contract in 2015.
“Chew was called to meet the accused (Ahmad Zahid) on Sept 16,2016 to explain the lack of supply in passports. A few months later, in mid-April 2017, Chew was again called to meet the accused at his official residence and at the meeting, Chew handed over two cheques amounting to RM6mil to the accused, ” he said when reading out his witness statement during examination-in-chief by DPP Gan Peng Kun. — BERNAMA