Kota Kinabalu: A self-employed man was charged in the Special Corruption Court here Tuesday with cheating a contractor of RM150,000 over RM1.5 million worth of school repair project in Beluran five years ago.
Sidu Edin, 58, pleaded not guilty before Sessions Court Judge Jason Juga.
Sidu was accused of cheating the contractor, 49, by tricking him into believing that Sidu could help him obtain an emergency repair project at SMK Terusan Sugut worth RM1.5 million.
Sidu’s trick had caused the complainant to give him RM150,000 cash at 8pm on March 26, 2019 at a hotel here.
The charge under Section 420 of the Penal Code carries a jail term of up to 10 years, whipping and also liable to fine, on conviction.
The court set April 2, for pre-trial case management and released the accused on bail of RM15,000 with RM3,000 deposited in one surety.
Jason also ordered Sidu to report to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) office once every two months and was ordered to surrender his international passport to court.
The court also wanred Sidu not to harass any prosecution witnesses pending the disposal of the case.
Earlier, MACC prosecuting officer Dzulkarnain Rousan Hasbi proposed RM15,000 and several bail conditions to be imposed on the accused.
Counsel Mohd Fadzri Azham Zainudin, representing Sidu, requested a lower bail by stating, among others, that he has dependants.
