Corruption: Ex-special aide to minister to serve two-year jail sentence from today

PUTRAJAYA - Former special aide to a minister will have to serve a two-year sentence from today after he failed in his final bid to set aside his conviction and jail sentence for two counts of corruption over a bus permit application from the Commercial Vehicle Licensing Board (CVLB), 20 years ago.

This followed the decision of the Court of Appeal’s three-member panel led by Datuk Hanipah Farikullah, who unanimously rejected the appeal filed by Eswadi Abd Rahim, 50, as the appellant against his conviction and sentence imposed by the Ipoh High Court on Dec 21, 2017.

Hanipah, who presided with Datuk Wira Ahmad Nasfy Yasin and Datuk Seri Mariana Yahya, said the was no reason for the court to interfere with the High Court’s decision in upholding the Sessions Court’s conviction and sentence against the appellant.

Eswadi, who was granted bail, had once served as a special aide to Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz, who was then the Minister of Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives.

He was charged with asking for his father’s name Abdul Rahim Ismail to be inserted as a director of Syarikat Azamat Hati Sdn Bhd in its application for a bus permit from the CVLB in December 2002.

Eswadi was also charged with accepting a bribe of RM6,000 which was deposited into his bank account as an inducement to help Chin Ah Lek to obtain the CVLB permit for the same company in January 2003.

On March 25, 2015, he was found guilty by the Sessions Court and was sentenced to two years’ jail and fined RM10,000 for the first charge and was also sentenced to two years’ jail and fined RM30,000 for the second charge.

The court also ordered him to serve the jail sentences concurrently.

His conviction and sentences were upheld by the High Court before he filed his final bid to the Court of Appeal. - BERNAMA