COMMENT | Muhyiddin's acquittal - rarest of rare cases?

COMMENT | In March this year, former prime minister cum Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin was slapped with six criminal charges before the Sessions Court in Kuala Lumpur.

Out of that six charges, two counts entailed allegations that he received RM195 million in funds that were proceeds from unlawful activities between Feb 25 to July 16, 2021, and Feb 8 to July 8 last year.

The charges were framed under Section 4(1)(b) of the Anti-Money Laundering and Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act 2001 (AMLATFPUAA).

The remaining four charges, on the other hand, involved allegations that he used his position as the PM and Bersatu president to ask RM200 million purportedly as a bribe from Bukhary Equity Sdn Bhd at the Prime Minister’s Department Complex, Federal Government Administrative Centre, Putrajaya between Feb 8-25, 2021.

He pleaded not guilty to all the six aforementioned indictments. Via his lawyers, Muhyiddin filed a motion asking the court to dismiss all the six charges preferred against him on the ground, inter alia, that the charges were defective and in turn vitiated by mala fide or bad faith on the part of the prosecution.

And the learned high court judge...