KUALA LUMPUR – The Sessions Court in Kota Kinabalu has sentenced former Sabah Water Department director Ag Mohd Tahir Mohd Talib to eight years’ imprisonment and a total fine of RM284.3 million for 12 counts of money laundering spanning more than RM45 million, committed a decade ago.
Judge Abu Bakar Manat ordered all jail terms to run concurrently, with a default sentence of 78 months’ imprisonment should the fines remain unpaid, Bernama reported.
Ag Mohd Tahir, 63, was convicted on 11 charges under Section 4(1)(b) and one charge under Section 4(1)(a) of the Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act 2001 (AMLATFPUA), relating to offences committed between October 4 and November 4, 2016, across various locations including his office, residences, bank branches, and a condominium in Sabah, as well as a tower in Kuala Lumpur.
His wife, Fauziah Piut, 61, and former deputy director Lim Lam Beng, 72, were discharged and acquitted of their respective charges.
During sentencing, Deputy Public Prosecutor Mahadi Abdul Jumaat urged the court to impose a strict penalty, stressing the severity of crimes involving public funds meant for essential water services.
“Cases like this are rare of the rarest, given the systematic nature of the money laundering which made detection difficult. The misappropriated funds belong to the people and should have been used to supply water, a basic necessity. For the past 10 to 20 years, media reports have highlighted the water supply difficulties in Sabah, especially in rural areas,” he said.
He added that if the funds had not been misappropriated, water supply issues in the state could have been mitigated.
Ag Mohd Tahir’s lawyer, Datuk Ansari Abdullah, noted that his client had been remanded for six months before posting bail of RM500,000 and is currently suffering from serious health issues, including osteoarthritis, which limit his daily activities.
Ansari requested a postponement of the sentence’s commencement, which Judge Abu Bakar granted, maintaining the bail conditions, including the RM500,000 bond with a land grant, while awaiting an appeal at the High Court. – May 19, 2026