A prosecution witness in the sexual harassment case involving preacher Ebit Erawan Ibrahim Lew, or Ebit Lew, told the Tenom magistrates’ court today that Ebit managed his own Instagram account.
Police investigating officer Noor Asyikin Shamsuri, the prosecution’s 18th witness, said this conclusion was based on analysis by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission.
Asyikin, 46, said based on MCMC’s reply letter, the Instagram account in Ebit’s name was managed by an individual named “Ebit Irawan Ibrahim Lew”, with information about the accused attached, including a profile photo of him in a red robe.
She said Google searches also revealed the name of a company, Transform Training & Consultancy, believed to be related to the case.
“The MCMC report also showed Ebit’s official Facebook page, which has the same phone number (as the company),” she said during examination-in-chief by deputy public prosecutor Nor Azizah Mohamad before magistrate Nur Asyraf Zolhani.
DPPs Analia Kamaruddin and Hidayat Wahab are also part of the prosecution team, while Ebit is represented by lawyers Ram Singh, Kamarudin Chinki and Prabjit Singh Gill.
Asyikin said the analysis report was received after police submitted a request to MCMC for an analysis of the accused’s social media accounts and phone numbers.
During cross-examination by Ram Singh, she denied the existence of communications between the complainant and Ebit on Instagram since 2018, as investigations showed they communicated using WhatsApp.
Ebit, 38, faces 11 charges under Section 509 of the Penal Code, including outraging the modesty of a woman in her 40s, by sending lewd messages and photos through WhatsApp between March and June 2021.
The trial resumes tomorrow.
