The Court of Appeal allowed Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor to adduce additional evidence in her appeal against her conviction in the RM1.25 billion Sarawak solar hybrid project corruption case on September 1, 2026 [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6].
The new evidence involves prosecution witness Rayyan Radzwill Abdullah, who alleged he was pressured and intimidated by the prosecution during the original trial [1, 3, 4, 5, 6]. It includes a statutory declaration from Rayyan dated July 10, 2026, accusations of prosecutorial coercion, and newly recovered WhatsApp messages [1, 3, 4].
Court of Appeal judge Datuk Choo Kah Sing said, "Allegations that the witness testimony was compromised by prosecutorial pressures strike at the integrity of the factfinding process. To refuse the application in such circumstances would risk the miscarriage of justice" [1]. He added that "the evidence should be admitted if it could not, without reasonable diligence, be obtained at trial, is relevant, credible, and capable of belief. If the evidence admitted could lead to a different outcome, these principles have been consistently applied here" [5].
The court noted it was not determining the truth of the new evidence at this stage but whether it was capable of belief and should be tested through further cross-examination [3, 4, 5, 6]. As Datuk Choo said, "At this stage, the court does not determine the truth, but only whether it is capable of belief. Credibility is properly tested in cross-examination" [3].
Rosmah was convicted by the High Court on September 1, 2022, and sentenced to 10 years in prison, plus a RM970 million fine, for corruption related to the solar project supplying 369 rural schools in Sarawak [1, 7]. The court said the additional evidence, "if accepted as true, could materially affect the factual findings of the case" [3].
The Court of Appeal ordered the fresh evidence to be heard by a different High Court judge and for Rayyan to be recalled for further cross-examination and re-examination within two weeks of September 10, 2026 [1, 2, 5, 6]. The prosecution objected to the admission of new evidence, citing delay and timing issues after the death of former lead prosecutor Datuk Sri Gopal Sri Ram [5].
The Court of Appeal fixed 16 hearing days in September 2026 for Rosmah’s appeal and ruled that no further postponements would be granted [5, 7]. On September 10, 2026, a new case management hearing is scheduled to handle the fresh evidence and witness re-examination [1].
