KUALA LUMPUR — A former company director has been sentenced to five years in jail, while three brothers have been charged in separate cases involving alleged unlicensed capital market activities, the Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) said.
The Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court on Wednesday sentenced former Kyaputen Sdn Bhd director Muhamad Fadzli Jamaludin to five years’ imprisonment after convicting him of three offences involving unlicensed fund management activities and nine money laundering charges.
Sessions Court Judge Hamidah Mohamed Deril ordered the five-year prison terms imposed for each of the 12 charges to run concurrently.
The court found that Fadzli had failed to raise a reasonable doubt in the prosecution’s case.
The offences were committed between August 2018 and April 2020 in Kuala Lumpur and Melaka and involved six victims who suffered combined losses of RM1.263 million.
During the trial, the prosecution called 23 witnesses, including the six victims. Fadzli testified under oath after being ordered to enter his defence but did not call any other witnesses.
He was initially charged by the SC on Nov 9, 2023, with three counts under Section 58(1) of the Capital Markets and Services Act 2007 for holding himself out as carrying on a fund management business without a licence.
He was subsequently charged on Nov 29, 2023, with nine counts of money laundering under Section 4(1)(b) of the Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act 2001. The two cases were jointly tried.
In a separate development, the SC charged brothers Anuar Hassan, Mohd Amin Hassan and Amir Hassan at three Kuala Lumpur Sessions Courts on Wednesday over allegations that they had carried on a business of dealing in securities without a Capital Markets Services Licence.
The alleged offences took place between March and October 2019 in Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya, Selangor and Johor.
All three claimed trial to the charges.
Amin was charged with one count of carrying on a business of dealing in securities and was granted bail of RM30,000 with two Malaysian sureties.
Anuar and Amir were jointly charged with two counts under Section 58(1) of the Capital Markets and Services Act, read together with Section 34 of the Penal Code. They were each granted bail of RM30,000 with two sureties.
In another court, Amin and Amir were jointly charged with one count and were each granted bail of RM20,000, while Amir faced two additional individual charges and was granted bail of RM30,000.
Anuar and Amin were also jointly charged with one count in a third Sessions Court and were each granted bail of RM30,000. Anuar faced another separate charge and was granted bail of RM30,000.
The courts ordered the three brothers to surrender their passports and report monthly to the SC investigating officer as part of their bail conditions.
A conviction under Section 58(1) of the Capital Markets and Services Act carries a fine of up to RM10 million, imprisonment of up to 10 years, or both.
The SC said fund management and dealing in securities are regulated activities that may only be carried out by licensed persons.
It reminded investors to exercise caution when considering investment offers, particularly those promising unusually high returns, and to verify the authorisation status of individuals and entities through the SC Investment Checker.
