Felda manager charged with eight counts of using forged documents

New Straits Times

19 hours ago

IPOH: A Felda manager was charged in the Sessions Court here today with eight counts of using forged documents related to contract labour and machinery payments six years ago.
Hendra Mohamad Nazeri, 45, who was the Felda manager at Gunung Besout 4 in Sungkai, pleaded not guilty to all charges when they were read before Judge Ainul Shahrin Mohamad.
For the first and second charges, Hendra is alleged to have dishonestly used six delivery order receipts from Minitech Bidor Quarry Sdn Bhd as genuine documents.
These documents were used as supporting evidence for a supply project involving labour, machinery, and equipment to deliver 100 tonnes of crusher run stones to Felda Gunung Besout 4, specifically at Lots Block 01, 03, and 05, each valued at RM5,000.
The offences were allegedly committed at a Maybank branch in Jalan Ahmad Boestamam, Slim River, on Dec 23, 2019.
Hendra also faces six additional charges for instructing a 37-year-old Felda Gunung Besout 4 Land Scheme Supervisor to prepare false documents, namely Contract Work Payment Certificates.
These documents were purportedly for supplying labour, vehicles, and machinery to conduct pest control for leaf-eating caterpillars over 12.04 hectares, and to repair roads over a stretch of 1,000 metres in Felda Gunung Besout, valued at RM1,149.12 and RM2,200, respectively.
Additional claims included house and office repair works, drainage and pipeline repairs spanning 500 metres, and supplying signage for staff housing areas, involving a total value of RM12,668.
All six offences were allegedly committed at the Felda Gunung Besout 4 office between July 2020 and March 2021.
The charges fall under Section 471 of the Penal Code and are punishable under Section 465 of the same Act, which carries a maximum sentence of two years' imprisonment, a fine, or both upon conviction.
Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) officer Mohd Afiq Mohd Adnan prosecuted, while the accused was unrepresented.
During mitigation, Hendra appealed for a reduced bail amount of RM500, stating that he is the sole breadwinner and suffers from a heart condition.
"I rely on Felda payments and have numerous financial obligations and debts. I have fully cooperated with the MACC and followed all procedures," he said.
However, the prosecution requested that bail be set at RM5,000 per charge.
The court later set total bail at RM6,000 with one surety, and fixed Sept 11 for mention and appointment of legal counsel.