Former Sabah Water Department director tells court only RM3 million of the RM20 million found in office pantry belonged to him, says the rest belonged to "someone else".

KOTA KINABALU, June 26 — A Sessions Court here was told today that the large sum of money allegedly found by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) in the pantry of a former Sabah Water Department director's office belonged to someone else.

Testifying as the first defence witness, 63-year-old Ag Mohd Tahir Mohd Talib told Judge Abu Bakar Manat that only the money found inside a knapsack belonged to him, while the rest of the cash discovered in the pantry was not his.

Under cross-examination by Deputy Public Prosecutor Mahadi Abdul Jumaat, Ag Mohd Tahir denied being the sole holder of the pantry key.

Mahadi: There was nothing in the pantry or the knapsack belonging to anyone else. Do you agree?

Ag Mohd Tahir: Only the contents of the knapsack were mine.

Mahadi: So there were items in the pantry that belonged to others?

Ag Mohd Tahir: Yes.

Mahadi: Can you specify what those items were?

Ag Mohd Tahir: A large amount of cash.

He confirmed that all the contents of the knapsack were his alone.

Earlier, during examination-in-chief, Ag Mohd Tahir claimed the bulk of the RM20 million found in the pantry was already there when he first entered the office. He said he occasionally stored his own money there, particularly when his brother came by to collect political donations.

He maintained that only RM3 million out of the RM20 million discovered belonged to him.

Ag Mohd Tahir is currently on trial with his wife, Fauziah Hj Piut, 58, and former deputy director Lim Lam Beng @ Lim Chee Hong, 69.

He faces 11 charges under the Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act 2001 (AMLATFPUA), while Fauziah faces 19 charges under Section 4(1)(b) of the same Act. The couple is also jointly charged with two counts under the same section, and Ag Mohd Tahir faces an additional charge under Section 4(1)(a).

The alleged offences occurred between October 4 and November 4, 2016, at various locations including Ag Mohd Tahir’s office, a residence in Sembulan, several bank branches, a condominium in Sulaman, and a tower in Kuala Lumpur.

Lim is accused of committing related offences between October 13 and November 8, 2016, at the MACC office in Jalan UMS and a home in Kota Kinabalu.

Ag Mohd Tahir also testified that he had no knowledge of his wife maintaining 19 bank accounts with a combined total of RM2.2 million.

He rejected allegations that MACC had seized 900 pieces of jewellery initially valued at RM1.7 million in 2016 and later reappraised at RM4.1 million in 2023.

The prosecution team includes Deputy Public Prosecutors Mahadi Abdul Jumaat, Haresh Prakash Somiah, and Zander Lim.

Ag Mohd Tahir and Fauziah are represented by Datuk Hj Ansari Abdullah and Erveana Ansari, while Lim is defended by Datuk Tan Hock Chuan, Baldev Singh, and Kelvin Wong.

The trial will resume on July 23. — The Borneo Post