Zara Qairina's bullying case update: Reason behind Malaysia's legal protection of minors accused in court proceedings
Peter Anthony's Legal Appeals Dismissed, Prison Sentence Imminent
Datuk Peter Anthony's legal appeals regarding his conviction for falsifying documents have been conclusively dismissed by the Court of Appeal. The Court's ruling, made on August 20, 2025, confirms his three-year prison sentence and a fine of RM50,000.
The Court of Appeal, consisting of Justices Datuk Azman Abdullah, Datuk Noorin Badaruddin, and Datuk Hayatul Akmal Abdul Aziz, unanimously decided that there was no miscarriage of justice in the original trial or appeals process. The court emphasized that Peter had full rights to be heard during his appeals and found no natural justice issues.
Peter sought a review of the March 4 decision by a different Court of Appeal panel. He applied to adduce new evidence under Section 61 of the Courts of Judicature Act 1964. The new evidence, a police report, was submitted after the trial and was believed to show Peter's victimization. However, the court considered the evidence insufficient to overturn the conviction.
The police report, submitted by a witness, Mohd Shukur Mohd Din, was admitted by the court, though Mohd Shukur had since passed away. The matter regarding Mohd Shukur's police report had been thoroughly discussed in the Court of Appeal's full grounds of judgment, with the deputy public prosecutor submitting that there was no breach of natural justice regarding the police report.
The offence for which Peter was convicted was allegedly committed at the office of the principal private secretary to the Prime Minister. Peter was charged with falsifying a letter from Universiti Malaysia Sabah's (UMS) office of the deputy vice-chancellor in relation to a UMS maintenance and service contract.
With the dismissal of his review application, Peter is likely to lose his Melalap state assembly seat. He has until September 2, 2025, to submit a pardon petition to the Pardons Board to avoid losing his seat. If no appeal or petition is filed by that deadline, the Sabah assembly will declare his seat vacant.
Despite being disappointed by the court ruling, Peter's political party, KDM, has accepted the decision and intends to continue its political efforts in the upcoming Sabah state election.
[1] The Star [2] Malay Mail [3] Bernama [4] New Straits Times [5] The Edge Markets
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