Businessman charged with receiving nearly RM1.3mil for non-existing investment scheme

BUTTERWORTH: A businessman faced charges at both the Sessions and Magistrates Courts here on five counts of soliciting and receiving deposits for the sum of RM1.295mil in connection with non-existent investments.

G Chandrasegaran, 57, pleaded not guilty to all the charges read out before Judge Noor Aini Yusof and Magistrate Siti Zulaika Nordin.

At the Sessions Court, the accused was charged with receiving an illegal deposit of RM820,000 from Sevanasparan Manikam without possessing a valid licence as required under Section 10 of the Financial Services Act 2013.

He allegedly committed the offence at No 3, Lorong Teratai Indah, Seberang Perai Utara on Dec 28, 2017.

The charge was framed under Section 137(1) of the Financial Services Act 2013, which provides for a maximum prison sentence of 10 years or a fine of up to RM50mil, or both, upon conviction.

Judge Noor Aini set bail at RM35,000 and ordered the accused to surrender his passport, report to the nearest police station once a month, and refrain from tampering with prosecution witnesses until the conclusion of the case.

Deputy public prosecutor Qatrin Nada Harun appeared for the prosecution, while lawyer R. Arvend represented Chandrasegaran.

Over at the Magistrate’s Court, the accused faced one count of dishonestly inducing the same victim to hand over RM180,000 in cash for the scheme at the Suria Active Resources Sdn Bhd office in Jalan Raja Uda on Jan 28, 2018.

The second and third counts entail Chandrasegaran dishonestly inducing the same victim to deposit sums of RM40,000 and RM20,000 into an account to participate in the non-existent scheme at the Maybank Bagan and Jalan Ong Yi How branches, respectively, on Feb 1 and 2, 2018.

On the fourth charge, Chandrasegaran dishonestly induced the same victim to hand over RM235,000 in cash to join the scheme at the RHB Kampung Gajah Branch on March 5, 2018.

The charges were framed under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating which is punishable by up to 10 years imprisonment, whipping, and is also liable to a fine, upon conviction.

Deputy public prosecutor Nurameera Shahrul Azrin offered bail at RM10,000 for each charge with one surety.

However, the accused’s lawyer appealed for a minimal bail amount, citing that his client is the sole provider for his family, has four children, has no prior criminal record and he also suffers from asthma, diabetes, and back pain.

The court set bail at RM8,000 with one surety and scheduled April 26 for case mention. – BK