Chronology of Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s sodomy II trial

Chronology of Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s sodomy II trial

June 28, 2008: Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan makes police report alleging Anwar had sodomised him at a condominium in Bukit Damansara between 3.10pm and 4.30pm on June 26, 2008.

Aug 7, 2008: Anwar pleads not guilty against the charge of having carnal intercourse against the order of nature at the Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court Judge S. M. Komathy Suppiah allowed Anwar to be released on personal bond of RM20,000 without surety, pending the disposal of the case.

March 10, 2009: The Sessions Court transfers the trial to the High Court with immediate effect. The High Court fixed July 1-24 for the sodomy trial.

June 17, 2009: Anwar applied to the High Court to strike out his sodomy charge on grounds that the entire charge was “a travesty, a complete farce and has absolutely no basis.”

Dec 1, 2009: The High Court ruled that it could not strike out the sodomy charge against Anwar, based solely on medical reports that there was no penetration. Justice Mohamad Zabidin said medical reports could not serve as the basis for the court to use its inherent powers to strike out the charge.

Feb 3, 2010: The sodomy trial opened with Mohd Saiful taking the stand as the first witness. In his testimony, Mohd Saiful revealed that Anwar, whom he had accused of sodomising him, had invited him to engage in carnal intercourse against the order of nature.

Feb 5, 2010: The trial judge, the prosecution and the defence revisited the Desa Damansara condominium where the alleged sodomy took place. Earlier, Mohd Saiful told the High Court that he did not pass motion for two days after he was sodomised by Anwar. He also testified that a pair of trousers he was wearing on the day of the incident was a gift from Anwar.

Feb 9, 2010: The sodomy trial was postponed again to enable the defence to file a response to the prosecution's affidavit-in-reply to Anwar's recusal application.

It was adjourned after the defence applied for Justice Mohamad Zabidin to recuse himself from hearing the case on grounds of bias.

Feb 25, 2010: The Federal Court rejected Anwar's application to procure key documents, including Mohd Saiful's DNA specimen sample, before the commencement of his sodomy trial.

March 3, 2010: During cross-examination by Anwar's lawyer, (the late) Karpal Singh, Mohd Saiful told the High Court that he did not wash his anus after the alleged incident as he wanted to preserve evidence.

Mohd Saiful also said that he did not bathe after the incident and only rinsed his body.

Aug 16, 2010: Anwar failed in his second attempt to drop the sodomy charge against him after his application to strike out the charge was dismissed by the High Court.

In his bid to drop the charge, Anwar claimed that the integrity and impartiality of the entire prosecution team had been compromised because of an alleged affair between Mohd Saiful and a member of the prosecution team.

Sept 20, 2010: The Court of Appeal dismissed an appeal by Anwar over his second application to strike out the sodomy charge against him, ruling that it had no jurisdiction to hear the issue.

Aug 22, 2011: Anwar, who opted to give evidence from the dock when reading his 32-page statement, denied he had sex with Mohd Saiful.

Jan 9, 2012: The High Court acquitted and discharged Anwar of sodomising Mohd Saiful. In the 80-page written judgment, Justice Mohamad Zabidin reveals there was penile penetration but it was uncorroborated by other evidence. He said the court could not be 100 per cent certain on the integrity of samples taken for DNA testing from Mohd Saiful as the samples could have been compromised before they reached the chemistry department for analysis.

July 9, 2012: The prosecution filed its petition of appeal which contained nine grounds, among others, to have Anwar convicted on a sodomy charge under Section 377B of the Penal Code.

Feb 22, 2013: The Court of Appeal has set two days from July 22, 2013 to hear the prosecution's appeal over Anwar's acquittal.

Sept 18, 2013: The Court of Appeal rejected Anwar's first application to disqualify senior lawyer Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah from appearing as public prosecutor to lead the prosecution in its appeal against his acquittal on a sodomy charge.

Nov 21, 2013: Anwar failed in his appeal at the Federal Court to disqualify Muhammad Shafee Abdullah from appearing as public prosecutor to lead the prosecution in its appeal. He filed the application as he said Muhammad Shafee could not appear as public prosecutor in the appeal because he (Muhammad Shafee) was a material witness in the sodomy trial.

Dec 11, 2013: Anwar filed his second attempt to disqualify Muhammad Shafee.

Dec 20, 2013: Anwar failed in his second attempt to disqualify Muhammad Shafee as lead prosecutor. In dismissing Anwar's application, Court of Appeal ruled that Anwar's application was devoid of any merit.

March 6 and 7, 2014: The Court of Appeal heard submissions from Muhammad Shafee and lawyer Karpal Singh.

March 7, 2014: Anwar was sentenced to five years' jail by the Court of Appeal after the court found him guilty of sodomising Mohd Saiful, six years ago. Justice Datuk Balia Yusof Wahi, who led a three-man panel in hearing the prosecution's appeal in the case, however, granted Anwar's application for a stay of the sentence, pending appeal with bail of RM10,000 in one surety. In overturning the High Court's decision in acquitting Anwar, Balia said the panel unanimously held that the trial judge had erred in his findings that the integrity of DNA samples used in the case had been compromised. Karpal Singh, speaking to reporters later, said that with this ruling, Anwar could not file his nomination papers for the Kajang state seat by-election on March 10.

April 24, 2014: The opposition leader filed a petition of appeal against his five-year jail sentence for sodomy at the Federal Court Registrar's Office, citing 35 grounds why his conviction and sentence should be set aside.

Aug 14, 2014: The Federal Court fixed Oct 28 and 29 to hear Anwar's final appeal. Datuk Sulaiman Abdullah, a senior lawyer, would lead the defence team, following the death of lawyer Karpal Singh in a road accident on April 17.

Oct 14, 2014: The Federal Court ruled that Muhammad Shafee was a proper and fit person to lead the prosecution team in Anwar's appeal on Oct 28.

Oct 28 and 29, 2014: The Federal Court is scheduled to hear submissions from the defence and prosecution.

Nov 7, 2014: THE Federal Court reserved its judgment on opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s sodomy conviction and five-year jail sentence. The five-man bench, chaired by Chief Justice Tun Arifin Zakaria, deferred their verdict after thanking all parties for their submissions.

Jan 10, 2015: Chief Justice Tun Ariffin Zakaria said the Federal Court will provide two-week notice before issuing the decision on Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's second sodomy trial.

Jan 26, 2015: The Federal Court announces that it will deliver its verdict on Datuk Anwar Ibrahim’s appeal on Feb 10.

Source:
NST
Themalaymailonline

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Latest Updated: Anwar Ibrahim gets 5 years Jailed on Sodomy 2 conviction

PUTRAJAYA, Feb 10 — Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has been sentenced to five years’ jail after the country’s apex court today upheld an earlier Court of Appeal ruling that reversed his acquittal of sodomising former aide Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan.

The verdict today effectively ends Anwar’s legal options to challenge the conviction. He now stands to lose his Permatang Pauh parliamentary seat as the law bars anyone fined over RM2,000 or imprisoned more than one year from serving as a lawmaker.

The decision also leaves the Pakatan Rakyat opposition pact without a leader.

When reading out the summary of the case, Chief Justice Tun Arifin Zakaria said the offence under Section 377B of the Penal Code was concerned with acts of carnal intercourse against the order of nature, and that consent was not a necessary ingredient to the commission.

“It is beyond reasonable doubt that PW1 (Saiful) was sodomised by the appellant (Anwar). The appeal against the conviction is dismissed,” Ariffin said when delivering the unanimous decision.

After hearing submissions from both sides and taking a brief recess, the judges came back to hand down the same five-year sentence that the Court of Appeal gave Anwar last year.

“The court dismissed both appeals and affirms sentence of five years,” Arifin said.

Earlier, Tan Sri Muhd Shafee Abdullah, the private lawyer appointed to lead the prosecution, argued that this was not the first time Anwar was convicted of sodomy and pressed for a heavier penalty as the offence permits for jail of up to 20 years.

He contended that the sentence should not be lesser than the six years Anwar had received during his first sodomy conviction that was later reversed.

“What I can do is to suggest  that five years in prison wrong in principle. It cannot be anything lesser than what he had been given many years ago,” Shafee said.

Submitting to mitigate the sentence, Anwar’s lawyer Ramkarpal Singh asked the court to consider the opposition leader’s past contributions to the country and to ignore his previous conviction.

“Your Lordships should take into account whether Court of Appeal judiciously considered the sentence and reflect that these are very special facts to the case.

“If your Lordships are not with me… it is then my submission no good reason on enhancing sentence on the facts of this case,” he said

Earlier, Arifin said the Federal Court concurred with the subordinate courts that Saiful was a credible witness.

He also said that the apex court accepted the DNA evidence tendered by the prosecution, explaining that degradation did not prevent the samples from being usable and that there was no break in the chain of custody as claimed by Anwar’s lawyers.

“Based on the above findings, we agree with the Court of Appeal judges,” Arifin said.

Further, the Chief Justice said there was not merit to Anwar’s claim of a political conspiracy in the charge and that such a defence was not considered by the three courts hearing the case.

Despite the claim, Anwar did not deny being present at the time and place of the alleged sodomy, Arifin noted.


“We hold no merit in in the appellant’s unsubstantiated claims of political conspiracy,” he said.

Immediately after the decision, Anwar turned around and hugged wife Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail as the rest of his family burst into tears.

The opposition leader appeared stoic as he made a series of calls on his mobile phone to inform people of his conviction.

The sombre air that began descending on the courtroom as Arifin began his summary became overwhelming after the decision was delivered, as Anwar’s allies also began tearing up.

One by one, family, friends and supporters came up to hug him and say their farewells as Anwar tried to contain his own emotions.

Behind him, his young grandchildren looked on, apparently unaware of the significance.

“Are we done yet?” one grandson asked.

Source: themalaymailonline

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Breaking News: Anwar found guilty of sodomy, jailed five years

Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's plan to win the Kajang by-election and become the Selangor menteri besar was scuttled by the Court of Appeal that overturned his acquittal for sodomy, and sentenced him to five years jail.

There was an uproar in the courtroom when the sentence was read out, overturning the High Court's earlier decision to acquit him for sodomy.

It was an unanimous decision.

Judge Datuk Balia Yusof Wahi, who is leading a three-man bench, has yet to pass sentence, which is a jail term of up to 20 years.

The bench delivered their decision in 90 minutes after hearing submissions from both parties yesterday and today.

Anwar’s defence team then sought an adjournment until next week to allow them to prepare for mitigation.

His lawyer Karpal pleaded that every opportunity should be given to his client.
"On Monday Anwar will have to be present in Parliament as the King will open the House and on Tuesday he will deliver his speech as opposition leader," Karpal said.

But Balia insisted that Karpal Singh, who is leading Anwar’s defence, must submit mitigating circumstances in an hour’s time.

This led Anwar to react angrily by standing up and shouting at the decision.
“Just do it now!” he exclaimed loudly, in apparent reference to the sentencing.
"It's all over again, they want to put me in the lock-up, that is why they want to continue with the mitigation," said Anwar.

A tearful Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, along with daughter Nurul Izzah Anwar, rushed to his side in an attempt to calm Anwar.

However, Shafee objected to the request. He said the appeal has not been rushed and mitigation must be done today.

"I am equally unprepared, but ready to make submission," he said.

He said he was sure Anwar would appeal to the Federal Court.
He said it was the fault of Anwat that this case had been delayed since July last year.
Karpal said Shafee was speaking with a forked tongue as he would not act in this manner if he was a lawyer representing a client.

"This is the problem of appointing a mercenary as DPP," Karpal thundered, followed by a shouting match between the two.
Karpal told Shafee to sit down as he was holding the floor.

Balia then said he would give the defence and prosecution an hour to prepare their submissions.
Karpal attempted to address the bench, but the judges just walked out.
With this verdict, Anwar's political career looks to have ended. He will be disqualified from all his political positions and will not be the PKR candidate in the Kajang by-election to be held later this month.

There was further tension in the courtroom and those in the public gallery shouted at the bench, causing the judge to adjourn proceedings for one hour.
In an immediate response, PKR strategic director Rafizi Ramli said: "The worst feeling is that I am not shocked and was prepared mentally for this round of injustice."
Selangor Menteri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim expressed his "regret over the Court of Appeal's decision. Another dark episode in the country's judiciary institution."

Former Bersih co-chair Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan said through her Twitter account, that she was shocked and called on Anwar to stay strong

"I can't believe this is happening!" she said.

DAP's Elizabeth Wong, who is Bukit Lanjan assemblywoman, said: "Shocking. Court of Appeals overturns High Court decision to acquit @anwaribrahim. Where is Justice?"

Batu MP Tian Chua tweeted: "Najib has declared war against Pakatan Rakyat; the people are ready for an all out uprising!"

Ahead of the decision, this afternoon police tightened security outside the court and closed the road in front of the Palace of Justice (PoJ) in Precinct 2, Putrajaya. The main compound outside the PoJ was also cordoned off with yellow crime scene tape.

Media personnel were issued passes to enter the courtroom, while access was limited for visitors and supporters. There were at least 50 media personnel waiting outside the courtroom.

Police presence was limited, with groups of 4-5 personnel posted at strategic locations, including the PoJ entrance, in the main lobby and outside the courtroom. – March 7, 2014.


Source: my.news.yahoo

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Anwar fails in final bid to stop Shafee from prosecuting sodomy appeal

Putrajaya's appeal in the sodomy acquittal of Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim will go on as scheduled after the opposition leader failed in his final bid to stop Umno lawyer Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah from leading the prosecution team at the Court of Appeal.

A five-man Federal Court bench chaired by Tan Sri Abdull Hamid Embong this afternoon which dismissed Anwar's stay application said there were no exceptional circumstances.

Hamid said the basis of the application was that Shafee’s appointment was a conflict of interest and that he was not a fit and proper person.

"We find no merit in the application and there is no reason to disturb the refusal of the Court of Appeal to grant Anwar a stay," he said of the unanimous decision.

Shafee submitted that the stay should be refused as it was to delay the public prosecutor's sodomy appeal. Read full article

Source: my.news.yahoo.com

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