KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 29 – Former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob will challenge the charge he faces regarding his failure to declare assets, which include RM14.7 million in cash, millions in foreign currencies, and gold bars.

His lead defense counsel, Datuk Amer Hamzah Arshad, stated that a formal application will be filed once the defense receives and thoroughly reviews all complete case documents.

“There are several legal issues we will raise. We will certainly challenge the reasonableness and validity of the charges,” Amer Hamzah told reporters following case mention before Sessions Court Judge Suzana Hussin on Tuesday.

During the proceedings, Deputy Public Prosecutor Ifa Sirrhu Samsudin informed the court that the prosecution had served five volumes of documents to the defense under Section 36 of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act 2009, including asset declaration forms and seizure records.

The defense confirmed receipt of the initial five volumes, and the court subsequently fixed December 4 for next case mention to allow for the handover of remaining documents and witness lists.

Ismail Sabri, 66, is accused of failing to declare cash totaling RM14,772,150 alongside substantial foreign currency holdings, including SGD 6,132,350; USD 1,461,400; CHF 3,000,000; EUR 12,164,150; JPY 363,000,000; GBP 50,250; NZD 44,600; AED 34,750,000; and AUD 352,850.

He is also charged with failing to declare five 1kg PAMP Suisse fine gold bars, one 100g PAMP Suisse fine silver bar, and one 5g 999 fine gold coin. The assets were formally listed in an MACC notice dated January 10, 2025.

The alleged offense took place at the MACC headquarters in Putrajaya on February 7, 2025.

The charge is framed under Section 36(2) of the MACC Act 2009, which carries a penalty of up to five years’ imprisonment and a fine not exceeding RM100,000 upon conviction.

–NMT

Tags: Ismail Sabri