What would it mean if GISB were prosecuted as an organized crime group?

KUALA LUMPUR – Could the subsidiaries of Global Ikhwan Services and Business Holdings (GISBH), more than 300 of whom have been arrested for alleged money laundering and human trafficking, possibly be charged as members of an organized crime group?

With around 10,000 members across the country, 400 business centers in 20 countries and 5,000 employees, police previously confirmed that its investigations into GISBH are moving down the organized crime syndicate route.

While GISBH CEO Datuk Nasiruddin Mohd Ali has been detained to assist in human trafficking investigations, another 34 members have been arrested under the controversial Security Offenses (Special Measures) Act 2012 (Sosma).

Several individuals believed to be caregivers at nursing homes raided by police since September 11 have also been charged in court with a variety of crimes, including child abuse and criminal intimidation.

Considering the serious nature of the crimes against GISBH, legal expert Srimurugan Alagan stated that the group’s members could be prosecuted as members of an organized crime unit as its structure and alleged misdeeds fit the legal definition of an organized crime group.

He emphasized that Section 130U of the Criminal Code specifies that an organized criminal group refers to a group of two or more persons who act together to commit serious criminal offenses in order to obtain, directly or indirectly, “material advantage, power or influence”.

‘Serious crime’ is defined in the Criminal Code as a crime punishable by a prison sentence of ten years or more.

“(In the case of GISBH) there is a modus operandi (as) the company runs charities in different parts of the country (and) they do it as part of some kind of education,” says Srimurugan, who is also the author of several legal textbooks, Scoop said.

“The way their business is structured to sustain itself fits the definition of an organized crime group,” he added, noting that Criminal Code provisions on organized crime “co-exist” with the Sosma law, as the latter applies to security crimes, including those involving organized crime groups.

Since the relevant articles of the Criminal Code on organized crime groups stipulate possible fines and various prison sentences of up to thirty years, the penalties for individual violations may be increased if criminals are found to be involved in such syndicates.

GISBH’s activities are structured to be self-sustaining, which fits the definition of an organized crime group. – Bernama photo, October 9, 2024

In addition, Section 130ZC relates to stricter penalties for offenses committed by an organized criminal group or its members, punishing those convicted of serious offenses under any written law with “twice as long” imprisonment as well as lashing can get.

When contacted by Scoop, former Deputy District Attorney Farhan Read referred to the legal doctrine of “common intent,” which indicates that an individual can be held responsible for crimes in which he played a role even if he was not the primary offender.

Section 34 of the Criminal Code states that where an offense is committed by several persons in furtherance of the common intention of all, each of those persons shall be liable for that act in the same manner as if the act were committed by one person alone.

“(In terms of prosecutions against organized crime groups) it could be something of an evidentiary nature where if a person is acting in concert (with other group members) and you are part of this organization, your liability is presumed.”

He added that in cases involving criminal gangs, police will often look for identifying marks, such as tattoos, to determine suspected individuals’ links to such gangs.

In the case of GISBH, Farhan, a practicing criminal lawyer, said such marks could come in the form of possession of common material and detection of banking transactions of other recognized GISBH figures.

Meanwhile, lawyer Wilson Wong claimed that while prosecutors could potentially go after GISBH because it is an organized crime group, it is more likely that the charges against GISBH will focus on their crimes under specific acts.

In particular, he referred to the Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activity Act 2001 (Amla) and the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smoggling of Migrants Act 2007 (Atipsom).

“With the number of bank accounts that have been frozen by the police so far (as part of the investigation into GISBH), it will raise a lot of questions, especially among the public… from what I have seen so far, for the public’s understanding (GISBH) can be called an organized crime group,” he said.

However, he warned against premature use of the label before the police investigation is completed and charges against GISBH and its members are filed in court, as the term covers various criminal entities, including gangsters.

Wong said investigations under the Amla and Atipsom Act are rarely easy because most criminal syndicates accused of offenses under the law tend to “operate in the shadows”, with the owners of bank accounts associated with the groups are unlikely to be the main leader of a syndicate. .

“Big bosses will never enter the battlefield – it will always be the people they assigned to manage these accounts for them,” he said, adding that when it comes to money-related offenses, authorities usually have a hard time proving elements of a crime.

On September 23, Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Razarudin Husain said police had frozen about RM2.75 million worth of assets linked to GISBH, with the value consisting of RM882,795.95 worth of funds from 138 frozen bank accounts, while another RM1.87 million is the estimated value of 22 cars of various types.

About two weeks later, on Oct 3, Razarudin said the police Anti-Money Laundering Unit had frozen another 205 GISBH-linked accounts worth RM1.35 million and an account with US$1,344.26. – October 9, 2024

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