Friday October 23, 2009
Duo charged with laundering RM22mil
By CHRISTINA TAN
KLANG: A father and son who are partners in Buluhmas Enterprise Sdn Bhd were charged in the Sessions Court yesterday with money laundering a total of RM22mil.
Azmi Ame Hamzah, 26, faces 38 counts of money laundering while his father Ame Hamzah Mat Atar, 51, faces 31 charges.
Azmi, of Taman Desa Jaya in Tanjong Karang, is alleged to have used money from illegal activities to pay the deposit for a Hyundai Sonata, a BMW Sports and a Mercedes Benz; buy a Nissan Vanette panel van, several shoplots, premium saving certificates and unit trust funds; repay loans for cars and a bungalow; and transfer money from one account to another under their company, among others.
He is accused of committing the offences between March 2008 and January 2009 at the Bank Simpanan Nasional in Sekinchan and Malayan Islamic Berhad in Tanjung Karang, among others.
Azmi was also charged with accepting deposits without a licence.Judge Yong Zarida Sazali set bail at RM200,000 in two sureties and allowed a plot of land worth RM350,000 as security.
She ordered Azmi to surrender his passport to the court and to report to the nearest police station on the first day of every month.
In a separate court, Ame Hamzah – who had already been charged in the Sessions Court here on Oct 16 under the Banking and Financial Institutions Act 1989 for illegal deposit taking – also claimed trial to all the charges for offences allegedly committed between May 2008 and January 2009.
Judge Anita Harun allowed the placement of a land title worth RM350,000 as security and ordered him to report to the Tanjung Karang police station on the first of every month.
Both judges allowed the cases of the father and son to be a jointly heard trial and set Dec 21 for mention.
DPPs Stanley Augustine and Fahmi Moin from Bank Negara and DPP Maziah Abu prosecuted while Yunus Sharif represented both accused.
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October 16, 2009 17:24 PM
Buluhmas Director Charged With Illegal Deposit-Taking
KLANG, Oct 16 (Bernama) -- Buluhmas Enterprise Sdn Bhd director Ame Hamzah Mat Atar pleaded not guilty in the Sessions Court here today to illegal deposit taking.
Ame Hamzah, 51, is alleged to have committed the offence at No.35 & 35A, Jalan 1, Taman Raden Jaya, Tanjong Karang, between April 14 and Oct 13 last year.
If convicted, he could be sentenced to a maximum RM10 million fine or 10 years jail, or both, under section 25(1) of the Banking and Financial Institutions Act 1989.
Ame Hamzah also pleaded not guilty on behalf of Buluhmas, an advertising agency, on a similar charge.
Bank Negara prosecuting officer Stanley Clement Augustin objected to bail as it is a non-bailable offence.
However, defence counsel Yunus Sharif said the court could exercise its discretion as his client was not likely to abscond.
He said the charge did not disclose any amount of deposits involved and his client had cooperated fully in the investigation.
He said Ame Hamzah and his family were in dire financial straits after all his personal and company assets and accounts were frozen and Ame Hamzah only managed to borrow RM50,000 from his friends to post bail.
Judge Yong Zarida Sazali allowed bail of RM50,000 in two sureties, impounded his passport and ordered that he report to the nearest police station on the first day of every month pending the disposal of the case.
She then fixed Nov 26 fro mention of the two cases.
-- BERNAMA
