Two days after the charges were read to them in a Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court, Vivy Yusof and Fadzaruddin Shah Anuar finally said something, on their respective Instagram pages

Vivy Yusof and Fadzaruddin Shah Anuar. Photo: fadzaanuar/Instagram

When they left the Sessions Court last Thursday, close to 3pm, after receiving the charges of criminal breach of trust (CBT) handed to them, Vivy Yusof and Fadzaruddin Shah Anuar walked out of the building, holding hands, saying nothing. Ms Yusof was seen nodding and smiling to some of the members of the media. The husband and wife did not make any public statements to the waiting press. One of the reporters was heard asking her, “semua okay (or everything okay)?”, she could be heard whispering a soft “yes”. Just as many speculate that they would most likely let their lawyers handle the case and do the talking, they put out a statement on their individual Instagram page a short moment back.

Their IG accounts were initially set to private, but minutes ago, an image of a simple, short, three-paragraph message was shared (most of their old posts and reels remain intact as their pages become available for public view again). They began by expressing their gratitude to their supporters (on IG alone, some 1.8 million followers): “Firstly, we would like to thank everyone for your support and kindness throughout this period. We had to take a moment to process what has happened and how the situation has progressed.”

The couple’s latest statement seen on Instagram. Screen shot: vivyyusof/Instagram

They went on to say that they are unable to discuss the case, but “will continue to give our full cooperation to the process. We trust the judiciary system will bring resolution to the case in hopes of ultimately clearing our names.” They seem to request that the media (social as well) to back-off, saying: “As the process (the word appears once in each paragraph) continues, we hope to gain some normalcy again, especially for the sake of our loved ones.” Please, don’t write about us anymore?

Ms Yusof and Mr Anuar were jointly charged for allegedly transferring RM8 million (or about S$2.5 million) from a FashionValet account to that of 30 Maple (the parent company of the couple’s modest fashion brands Duck and Lilit). Bail was set at RM100,000 each. According to The Star, their lawyer said that both the accused were “facing financial hardship and had to depend on their friends and family financially”. The founders of FashionValet made no mention of their money woes in the IG statement. Netizens in Malaysia are, however, unconvinced of their kesusahan kewangan (financial hardship), given that their social media show how well they live. They chorused: “percaya ke (believable)?”