Najib Razak to defend 25 charges in 1MDB scandal after court deems evidence sufficient

KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA: Former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak will proceed with his defence on 25 charges of abuse of power and money laundering, following a ruling by the Kuala Lumpur High Court on 30 October.

Judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah found the prosecution’s evidence compelling enough to require Najib to respond formally to the charges in the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) corruption case.

The judge’s decision follows 12 days of intense submissions from both the prosecution and defence, which commenced on 19 August and concluded on 3 October.

In his ruling, Judge Sequerah noted that the defence had argued that the charges against Najib were “defective, duplicitous, and ambiguous,” and claimed that Najib had been misled.

However, the judge refuted these claims, asserting that the charges were legally sound and met all the criteria under the Malaysian Criminal Procedure Code.

The defence further contended that several witnesses presented by the prosecution, including former 1MDB executives such as ex-chief financial officer Azmi Tahir, former chairman Tan Sri Mohd Bakke Salleh, and former AmBank manager Joanna Yu, provided hearsay evidence.

According to the defence, these witnesses’ communications were largely with individuals who were either untraceable, such as fugitive financier Low Taek Jho (known as Jho Low) and Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil, or deceased, including Najib’s former chief of staff Datuk Azlin Alias.

Judge rules business communications admissible, affirms witness credibility

Addressing this argument, Judge Sequerah ruled that the witnesses’ communications with the named individuals occurred as part of their regular business duties and were, therefore, admissible as evidence.

“I find the testimonies of these witnesses were consistent and that the credibility of these witnesses remains intact,” Judge Sequerah said.

Najib faces four counts of abuse of power for allegedly using his position to receive RM2.28 billion (approximately US$518 million) from 1MDB funds, in addition to 21 counts of money laundering involving the same amount.

The abuse of power charges are connected to events that allegedly took place at an AmIslamic Bank Bhd branch on Jalan Raja Chulan between 24 February 2011 and 19 December 2014, while the money laundering charges involve alleged transactions occurring between 22 March and 30 August 2013.

If convicted, Najib faces up to 20 years in prison and fines up to five times the value of the gratification received or RM10,000  (US$2,290), whichever is greater.

The charges fall under Section 23(1) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act 2009, punishable under Section 24(1) of the same Act.

The prosecution initially closed its case on 30 May after summoning 50 witnesses, among whom were several prominent figures in Malaysian finance and governance.

Former 1MDB chairman Tan Sri Mohd Bakke Salleh, former CEO Datuk Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi, and former Bank Negara governor Tan Sri Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz were among those testifying.

Notably, former 1MDB general counsel Jasmine Loo, who had avoided authorities for nearly five years, surrendered in July last year to become the prosecution’s final witness.

Najib Razak apologises to Malaysians for 1MDB scandal but maintains innocence

In recent weeks, Najib issued a public apology for what he described as mishandling the 1MDB scandal, stating in a letter read by his son at a press conference that “it pains me every day to know that the 1MDB debacle happened under my watch as minister of finance and prime minister.”

However, Najib has also maintained his innocence, arguing that he should not be held legally accountable for activities he claims he neither initiated nor knowingly supported.

Najib is already serving a sentence following his conviction in a separate 1MDB-related case involving SRC International, another former subsidiary.

His original 12-year sentence was later reduced by half.

This latest case, which has spanned 235 days since the prosecution opened on 28 August 2019, sees Deputy Public Prosecutor Ahmad Akram Gharib leading the state’s case, assisted by DPPs Mohamad Mustaffa P Kunyalam and Kamal Bahrin Omar.

Defence for Najib is headed by lead counsel Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, supported by lawyers Wan Mohammad Arfan Wan Othman and Wan Azwan Aiman Wan Fakhruddin.