PUTRAJAYA – The Federal Court has postponed its ruling on the prosecution’s final appeal against the acquittal of Muar MP Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman to July 13, after one of the judges on the panel was unable to attend due to medical leave.
The three‑member bench, comprising Court of Appeal president Datuk Seri Abu Bakar Jais, Justice Datuk Che Mohd Ruzima Ghazali and Justice Collin Lawrence Sequerah, was scheduled to deliver its decision today.
However, Abu Bakar, sitting with Sequerah, said it was not appropriate to announce the ruling without the full panel present.
Syed Saddiq, 33, has faced a protracted legal battle since 2021, when he was charged with abetting Armada assistant treasurer Rafiq Hakim Razali in committing criminal breach of trust involving RM1 million in Bersatu Youth funds.
He was also accused of misappropriating RM120,000 from Armada Bumi Bersatu Enterprise’s Maybank Islamic account, and two counts of money laundering involving RM50,000 each, transferred into his Amanah Saham Bumiputera account in Johor Bahru.
The High Court convicted him in 2022, imposing a sentence of seven years’ imprisonment, two strokes of the cane and a RM10 million fine. The conviction forced him to step down as president of Muda, the youth‑based party he founded.
In June 2025, however, the Court of Appeal unanimously overturned the conviction, acquitting and discharging him of all charges. That ruling was hailed by his supporters as vindication, but the Attorney General’s Chambers filed a final appeal to the Federal Court, leaving his fate hanging once again.
Today’s deferment means the apex court’s decision — whether to uphold his acquittal or reinstate the conviction — will only be known on July 13, prolonging the suspense in one of Malaysia’s most closely watched political trials. – June 30, 2026