KUALA LUMPUR – The chairman of Pertubuhan Kebajikan Serantau Muslim, Mohd Hakim Mohd Nor, was brought before the Sessions Court here today on a charge of misappropriating RM207,000 belonging to the organisation, involving funds collected for overseas humanitarian missions seven years ago.
Mohd Hakim, 39, pleaded not guilty after the charge was read out before Judge Azrul Darus, and claimed trial.
According to the charge, the accused, in his capacity as chairman of Pertubuhan Kebajikan Serantau Muslim, is alleged to have dishonestly misappropriated donation funds belonging to the organisation at Maybank Islamic Berhad, Dayabumi Complex branch, Jalan Sultan Hishamuddin, on Dec 27, 2019.
The funds were purportedly public donations intended for humanitarian missions carried out in cooperation with non-governmental organisations (NGOs) for distribution to Myanmar, Yemen, Syria and Palestine.
The charge was framed under Section 403 of the Penal Code, which provides for a sentence of imprisonment for a minimum of six months and a maximum of five years, as well as whipping and a fine, upon conviction.
During proceedings, MACC deputy public prosecutor Asmaa’ Zamri applied for bail to be set at RM50,000 with one surety. The prosecution also sought additional conditions, including requiring the accused to report to the nearest MACC office at the beginning of every month, surrender his international passport to the court, and refrain from interfering with prosecution witnesses throughout the trial.
However, defence counsel Azizul Shariman requested a reduction in the bail amount, arguing that the charge was not brought under the MACC Act despite being investigated by the commission, and that the prescribed punishment was less severe compared with offences under the MACC Act.
He further informed the court that his client had fully cooperated with investigators since June 2025, including being remanded for 12 days, and had attended court early for today’s proceedings.
Azizul also disclosed that the accused is facing several other charges at courts in Malacca and Ipoh, involving significantly larger sums, and is expected to be charged in those cases in the near future. As such, he submitted that the accused would need to prepare additional bail for those proceedings.
In light of this, the defence urged the court to impose a reasonable bail amount to ensure the accused would be able to furnish bail in subsequent cases and secure his continued attendance in court.
After hearing submissions from both parties, the court allowed the accused to be released on bail of RM10,000 with one surety, and imposed additional conditions requiring him to report to the MACC Malacca office, surrender his international passport to the court until the disposal of the case, observe a travel ban, and refrain from interfering with prosecution witnesses.
The court fixed March 11 for mention of the case for the submission of documents. -MalayaDailyToday
