Guan Eng told me to set up account for payments, businessman tells court
KUALA LUMPUR : A businessman told Lim Guan Eng's corruption trial that the former Penang chief minister instructed him to open a bank account eight years ago to facilitate payments in relation to the undersea tunnel project.
G Gnanaraja said he utilised Bumi Muhibah Sdn Bhd to pay bribes to Lim sometime in August 2017.
He said the company maintained a CIMB bank account ending in 783, to which he had full access.
'YB Lim and I spoke about this when we were travelling in a car,' said Gnanaraja.
Gnanaraja said he met with fellow businessman Zarul Ahmad Zulkifli in May that year to discuss setting up a company for Zarul to facilitate payments to Lim.
'Zarul wanted me to be the 'middleman', to hand over money to me, as I was not involved with opposition parties (at the time),' he said, adding that Zarul subsequently introduced him to Lim.
First 'middleman' task
Gnanaraja told the court that he acted as a 'middleman' for the first time on Aug 20, 2017, when he was instructed to pass RM1 million to Lim.
'Zarul gave me two bags (containing RM1 million each) at Eastin Hotel a few days earlier. He put them in my car and left,' he said.
Gnanaraja then went home and put the bags in his study room.
'I checked both bags and saw that they contained RM100 notes. I also locked my study room so that no one would enter,' he said.
The businessman said Zarul contacted him on Aug 20, 2017, asking him to bring one of the bags.
'Zarul said that we were picking up YB Lim from Hotel Wenworth to go to Publika,' Gnanaraja said.
The hearing before judge Azura Alwi was adjourned to Aug 19 after Gnanaraja told the court he was unwell.
Lim is accused of using his position as Penang chief minister to solicit a 10% share of profits from the undersea tunnel project and receiving RM3.3 million in bribes from Zarul. He also faces two charges of dishonestly misappropriating RM208.7 million worth of state land.
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