SHAH ALAM, Selangor: A local news portal journalist pleaded not guilty in the Sessions Court here today to a charge of accepting a bribe of RM20,000.
B. Nantha Kumar, 42, was charged with corruptly accepting the cash from a Pakistani national, Muhammad Zahid, as an inducement to take down and not upload any article regarding a Pakistani foreign worker cartel syndicate on Malaysiakini.
He was charged with committing the act at a hotel here at 11.45 pm on February 28.
The charge was brought under Section 16 (a)(A) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act 2009.
It is punishable under Section 24 of the same act, which, if convicted, carries a maximum jail term of 20 years and a fine of not less than five times the amount or value of the bribe or RM10,000, whichever is higher.
MACC Deputy Public Prosecutor Alis Izzati Azurin Mohd Rusdi proposed bail of RM20,000 for the accused with additional conditions to surrender his passport to the court and report to the nearest MACC office once a month.
“The prosecution humbly requests the court to issue a warning to the accused not to disturb witnesses and not to upload articles or comments that may affect or prejudice his case in the future,” he said.
Lawyer P. Purshotaman appealed for a low bail amount of RM5,000 considering that his client supports two children aged 18 and 11 respectively.
He said Nantha Kumar’s role as one of those who helped break the syndicate that threatened national security and had risked his life to help the government should be considered in granting minimum bail.
“My client is an award-winning journalist, and our judicial system holds to the principle that a person is innocent until proven guilty.
“He has great respect for the court and appeared in court in person when notified by the investigating officer two days ago, which shows that he respects the court process,” Purshotaman said.
Shah Alam Judge Datuk Mohd Nasir Nordin allowed Nantha Kumar to be bailed at RM10,000 with one surety, and must surrender his passport and report to the nearest MACC office every month.
The court set a re-mention of the case on April 23. – BERNAMA
