Businessman faces 17 charges of cheating Socso over courses, training involving over RM800,000

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 21 — A businessman pleaded not guilty in the Sessions Court here today to 17 charges of deceiving the Social Security Organisation (Socso) over non-existent courses and training involving money totalling RM832,000, five years ago.

According to the first to 17th charges, P. Sathia Seelan, 52, is charged with duping Socso by deceiving two officers of the organisation into believing a document containing a list of attendance names and signatures of participants for three courses that were never conducted in the names of nine companies dated between Dec 7, 2020 and June 12, 2021.

The act prompted Socso to make a payment of RM832,000 to the accused’s company Global Education Network Sdn Bhd, which the organisation would not have done so if it had not been deceived.

The act was allegedly committed at the Employment Services Division, Employment Insurance System Office Tower, Socso in Putrajaya between Dec 23, 2020 and Jan 23, 2021, under Section 420 of the Penal Code which provides for a minimum prison sentence of one year and a maximum of 10 years with whipping and a fine, if convicted.

Earlier, Deputy Public Prosecutor Siti Amirah Muhammad Ali proposed bail of RM100,000 with one surety for Sathia Seelan, taking into account that the offence involved more than RM800,000.

“In addition, we are requesting additional conditions that the accused must surrender his passport to the court, report to the Putrajaya MACC office once a month and not to interfere with prosecution witnesses,” he said.

Lawyer R.Babu Naidu, who represented Sathia Seelan, applied for bail of RM40,000 on the grounds that his married client had cooperated well throughout the investigation against him.

Before Judge Rosli Ahmad, unemployed R. Nanthagopal, 43, pleaded not guilty to 17 counts of abetting with Sathia Seelan for the same offence.

The charge was brought under Section 420 of the Penal Code read together with Section 109 of the same code, which provides for a prison sentence of not less than one year and a maximum of 10 years with whipping and a fine, if convicted.

Siti Amirah also proposed bail of RM100,000 for Nanthagopal with additional conditions similar to Sathia Seelan, while Babu Naidu applied for the same bail on the grounds that his client was married and had three unemployed children and suffered from high blood pressure and heart disease.

Judges Suzana and Rosli respectively allowed Sathia Seelan and Nanthagopal bail of RM60,000 each with one surety and additional conditions requested by the prosecution.

The court set March 19 and March 6 for mention of the case for Sathia Seelan and Nanthagopal. — Bernama