KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA: For someone facing 296 counts of money laundering, Benny Khoo Ban Sean did not look worried in the least.

He also seemed unfazed by the flashing cameras outside the court.

He appeared calm when the charges were read to him at the Sessions Court yesterday.

Khoo's expression was no different from his co-director, Daniel Choong Yew Chee, who was charged with the same offences on June 26.

The only difference was in the case of Choong, the court interpreter took more than an hour to read the charges. But for Khoo, the same interpreter took only 10 minutes because the charges were condensed.

While waiting for his case to be called, Khoo was seen chatting with friends seated in the public gallery. Once in a while, Khoo would turn his attention to the media and smile.

Choong was also present in court yesterday.

On June 23, Choong claimed trial at the Ipoh Sessions Court to 94 counts of money laundering involving RM23.3 million, and a further 296 counts at the Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court three days later.

Khoo, 62, was supposed to have been charged together with Choong, 40, but was admitted twice to a specialist hospital in Ipoh for high-blood pressure and other complications.

Yesterday, Khoo, the director of G-Gold Gallery Sdn Bhd claimed trial to 296 charges of money laundering involving RM57 million.

He was charged with transferring the proceeds of unlawful activities ranging between RM897 and RM2 million on each occasion from the company's bank accounts to those of security firms, companies and banks.

The father of two was said to have committed the offences at the company premises in Jalan Pudu between Dec 2, 2004, and May 15, 2006.

Deputy public prosecutor Budiman Lutfi Mohamed proposed bail be set at RM1 million and applied for Khoo's passport to be surrendered to the court.

Khoo's counsel, Gurbachan Singh, informed the court that Khoo would surrender the passport once his case at the Ipoh Sessions Court was over.

The passport is currently with the court. He was charged there on June 18 with 94 counts of money laundering involving RM23.3 million.

Judge Rozana Ali Yusoff set bail at RM1 million in one surety and ordered Khoo to surrender his passport if his other cases were disposed of earlier.

She fixed Nov 10 for mention, pending the outcome of the representation made to the Attorney-General's Chambers.

In another Sessions Court, Khoo also claimed trial to illegal deposit-taking involving more than RM10 million in Ipoh between July 2003 and May 2006.

Judge S.M. Komathy Suppiah fixed Nov 10 for mention and set bail at RM500,000 in one surety.