Jobless man gets 14 months jail for exposing self to woman teacher

Programmer who last month alleged he sold 900,000 signatures to the Save Malaysia Movement, has now penned a second SD retracting his first one.

PETALING JAYA: The programmer who last month alleged fraud in the Citizens’ Declaration petition is now singing a different tune.

Azharuddin Othman has purportedly made a second Statutory Declaration (SD) retracting his first one (which alleged the fraud), citing “mistakes” in the latter, a report in news portal Malaysiakini said.

In the original SD, Azharuddin had alleged that he sold a database of 900,000 names to Syarul Ema Rena Abu Samah aka Ratu Naga, to be provided to the Citizens’ Declaration.

The latest SD is being circulated in several Facebook pages, such as Otai Bersih and Kelab Mukhriz Mahathir, said the report.

He said he signed the new document to avoid legal action, and that it was done willingly and without coercion.

“I would like to state that I do not know the person known as Ema (Ratu Naga) and never had any dealings with her.

“Before this, I was hired to hold a press conference based on the text given by the person who hired me, which is Badrul Hisham Shaharin (Chegubard),” he said. The SD bore a commissioner of oath’s stamp based in the Palace of Justice in Putrajaya, said the report.

The portal contacted Badrul Hisham, who claimed the new SD was fake.

“You guys seem to be happy spreading false SDs,” he commented on the two Facebook pages which ran the post.

He also told Malaysiakini the new SD was “slander by (former premier Dr) Mahathir (Mohamad)’s team.” He is also expected to hold a press conference on the matter tomorrow.

Johor sultan can pardon crown prince's critic, say lawyers

The Johor sultan has the power to pardon the teenager who was sentenced to jail for making rude remarks about Johor Crown Prince Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim, according to lawyers.

The power to pardon is provided under Article 42 of the Federal Constitution, which states that the ruler of a state "has power to grant pardons, reprieves and respites in respect of all other offences committed in his state", they said.

"In light of Tunku Ismail's previous statement, it is apt that this case be considered for pardon," lawyer Eric Paulsen told Malaysiakini today.

Paulsen was referring to the crown prince's request that the police not arrest his critics and instead let them "say what they want to say" to his face.

Muhammad Amirul Azwan Mohd Shakri, 19, was on Tuesday sentenced to a year in jail by a Sessions Court in Johor Baru, after he pleaded guilty to 14 counts of making insulting comments with the intent to offend the Johor royalty.

This prompted civil societies and human rights lawyers to question why the teenager was given the maximum sentence and was not represented.

Lawyer New Sin Yew told Malaysiakini that while the Johor sultan could pardon Amirul, the teenager did not need to seek pardon right now.

"There's no need to seek pardon at this juncture. The boy can still appeal against the sentence.

"The Sessions Court judge was clearly wrong in his sentencing," he said.

Usually, New added, people only sought pardon when all avenues of appeal had been exhausted.

However, Paulsen said he did not think Article 42 of the Federal Constitution prevented an indivudual from applying for pardon even if he or she had not exhausted all appeals.

"Of course, the power of pardon is exercisable on advice of the Pardons Board, which may require exhaustion of appeal," he said.

Amirul was sentenced to jail for making the insulting comments on Facebook between March and April this year under the pseudonym 'Miyo Castello'.

At least three people have been arrested in the last two weeks for allegedly posting rude remarks against the crown prince.

Noh Omar flays DAP for disrespecting Amanah

SG BESAR POLLS Putting up inflammatory billboards without Amanah's approval shows that DAP doesn't respect anyone, said Selangor BN chief Noh Omar.

"If there was no permission from Amanah, this shows that DAP never respected Amanah and will do as they please.

"Maybe DAP thinks PAS and Amanah are the same. DAP never respected PAS and now it's proven they don't respect Amanah," Noh told Malaysiakini after attending an event in Sungai Besar today.

He was commenting on the billboards bearing Amanah's logo that DAP had put up in Sekinchan yesterday, which attacked BN, PAS and Sungai Besar Umno chief Jamal Md Yunos.

The billboards, which among others bore a quote by Jamal saying it was not wrong to say 'Cina babi' (Chinese pigs) caused a stir and was promptly taken down by the Election Commission.

Noh said besides disrespecting Amanah, the billboards clearly showed that DAP was a racist party.

"DAP wants to create provocation, and play racist sentiments in this by-election. "

Selangor DAP chief Tony Pua had defended the banners, saying these were issues they wanted to highlight.

Amanah communications chief Khalid Samad however said he has sorted it out with DAP, and that they would not put up any more provocative billboards.

Amamah is facing both BN and PAS in three-cornered fights for the Sungai Besar parliamentary seat, as well as in Kuala Kangsar.

Both constituencies will go to the polls on June 18.

WSJ issues correction, says 1MDB bond funds went to Switzerland

The Wall Street Journal has issued a correction, stating that the US$3 billion bond fund Goldman Sachs raised for 1MDB went to BSI Bank in Switzerland and not Singapore as initially reported.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc wired US$3 billion in proceeds from a March 2013 bond issued by Malaysia’s 1MDB to the state fund’s account in Switzerland at BSI SA, according to a person familiar with the matter.

"An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated the money was sent to 1MDB’s account at the private bank’s Singapore branch," said the WSJ in a footnote to the original article published on June 7.

The WSJ issued the correction after the Monetary Authority of Singapore denied that 1MDB's bond funds was transferred into banks in the city state.

The prime minister's aide Tengku Shariffuddin Tengku Ahmad had yesterday jumped on the mistake, accusing the publication of lying and trying to destablise the Malaysian government.

“By presenting the unverified lies of the government’s opponents as facts, the WSJ has become their willing tool – in their openly declared campaign to unseat a democratically elected government, using 1MDB as an excuse.

“It should be investigated why the WSJ is publishing so many proven lies about one country, and why an international newspaper is taking sides in Malaysia’s internal affairs,” he had said.

However, the WSJ stood by the allegation that part of the US$3 billion sent to Switzerland (and not Singapore) ended up in offshore accounts that eventually landed in Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak's personal bank accounts.

The report, titled 'Goldman probed over Malaysia fund 1MDB', said the bank was being investigated if it broke any laws in its dealings with 1MDB.

The WSJ had in July last year revealed that US$681 million (then RM2.6 billion) entered Najib's personal bank accounts from an offshore entity called Tanore Finance.

Najib later admitted to receiving the funds but claimed that it was an Arab "donation".

He denied taking government funds for personal gain.

Australia-based ABC News in March later revealed that the total sum entering Najib's personal bank accounts from multiple sources amounted to over US$1 billion (RM4.2 billion).

Malaysian attorney-general Mohamed Apandi Ali accepted the explanation that the funds were a "donation" and cleared Najib of wrongdoing.

Apandi also cleared Najib of receiving multi-million ringgit transfers from state-owned SRC International on grounds that he was unaware about the deposits.

U.S. returns $100 million of stolen artifacts to India

(CNN)It's taken a while, but India is finally welcoming home some long-lost national treasures.

The U.S. has handed back more than 200 ancient artifacts, valued at more than $100 million, that were stolen from religious sites in India and smuggled out of the country.

The artifacts included religious statues, bronzes and terracotta pieces, some of them dating back more than 2,000 years. They were returned to the Indian government Monday at a Washington, D.C. ceremony attended by U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"On behalf of President Obama, it is my great privilege to return these marvelous objects to the people of India," Lynch said.

Most of the pieces were seized during Operation Hidden Idol, an investigation that began in 2007 after Homeland Security special agents received a tip about a shipment of seven crates destined for the United States and labeled as "marble garden table sets."

Examination of the shipment in question revealed numerous antiquities. The shipment was imported by Subhash Kapoor, owner of Art of the Past Gallery in New York. The investigation found that Kapoor allegedly created false provenances to disguise the histories of his illicit antiquities, according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Kapoor was arrested in 2012 and currently awaits trial in India.

The stolen treasures were recovered as a result of a massive collaborative effort between U.S. customs officials, New York and federal prosecutors, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Department of Justice's Office of International Affairs.

"Today, more than 200 antiquities and cultural artifacts that speak to India's astounding history and beautiful culture are beginning their journey home, where they can be studied and reflected upon for generations to come," Lynch added.

"It is my hope -- and the hope of the American people -- that this repatriation will serve as a sign of our great respect for India's culture."

Prime Minister Modi thanked the U.S. for returning the national treasures to their rightful home.

Among the pieces is a statue of Saint Manikkavacakar, a Hindu mystic and poet from the Chola period (circa 850 AD to 1250 AD), that was stolen from the Sivan Temple in Chennai, India. It's valued at $1.5 million. Another is a bronze sculpture of Hindu god Ganesha, which is estimated to be 1,000 years old.

Since 2007 the U.S. has returned more than 8,000 stolen artifacts to 30 countries, including paintings from France, Germany, Poland and Austria; 15th to 18th century manuscripts from Italy and Peru; and cultural artifacts from China, Cambodia and Iraq.

Here are pictures of some of the artefacts. pic.twitter.com/Q4PWMOee2X

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) June 7, 2016