Court Seizes 14 Items from Jamal Md Yunos’ Home to Recover Unpaid Legal Costs

KUALA LUMPUR: Fourteen household items have been seized from the Ampang residence of Sungai Besar Umno division chief Datuk Seri Jamal Md Yunos to recover unpaid legal costs arising from a defamation lawsuit filed by Seputeh MP Teresa Kok.

In a statement on Wednesday (Jan 28), Kok’s lawyer Datuk Sankara Nair said the items were seized pursuant to a court order and would be auctioned to settle the outstanding judgment sum.

Earlier in the day, a court assistant registrar and a bailiff, accompanied by lawyer G. Maniggandan of Messrs SN Nair & Partners and police officers, arrived at Jamal’s home at about 11.42am to execute a writ of seizure and sale. After repeated attempts to contact the occupants received no response, forced entry was carried out in accordance with a court order dated Jan 23.

“The writ of seizure was duly executed, and a total of 14 items were seized from the premises,” Sankara said, adding that the process concluded at 12.36pm. He confirmed that the items seized were household goods.

The enforcement action was taken to recover RM66,061.85 in unpaid costs awarded to Kok following a final High Court judgment in her favor.

Kok filed the defamation suit on April 6, 2017, alleging that Jamal had made defamatory statements about her during a press conference on March 8, 2017, concerning the Yayasan Warisan Anak Selangor (Yawas) funds. She claimed the statements were disseminated through print and electronic media, including Jamal’s Facebook page, and implied that she had misappropriated state funds for personal gain.

On July 26, 2022, the High Court ruled in Kok’s favor, awarding her RM300,000 in damages and RM50,000 in costs. Jamal’s appeal was dismissed by the Court of Appeal on March 27, 2024, which also ordered him to pay an additional RM50,000 in legal costs.

Although the Court of Appeal had earlier allowed Jamal to defer payment of the RM300,000 damages pending a Federal Court appeal subject to the amount being deposited with Kok’s lawyers the Federal Court ultimately dismissed his application for leave to appeal on July 30, 2024. Jamal has since settled the RM300,000 damages award.