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Convicted kleptocrat Najib ‘1MDB’ Razak damned by witness in High Court again
KUALA LUMPUR, May 28, 2024: The High Court today heard that the disgraced and shameless jailbird, former prime minister Najib “1MDB’ Razak tried to block Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC)’s probe on 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB).
MACC senior officer Nur Aida Arifin testified that Najib (the convicted kleptocrat) “instructed” several actions to restrict MACC’s investigation during his time in office, including closing the case.
Najib, 70, is on trial for 25 charges - four for abuse of power that allegedly brought him the financial benefit to the tune of RM2.28 billion; and 21 for money laundering involving the same amount of money.
No News Is Bad News reproduces below a news report on the court proceedings:
Najib tried to block MACC probe into 1MDB, witness tells court
Tuesday, 28 May 2024
3:09 PM MYT
KUALA LUMPUR: An investigating officer told the High Court that Datuk Seri Najib Razak tried to impede the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission's (MACC) probe on 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB).
Senior officer Nur Aida Arifin testified that the former prime minister had "instructed" several actions to restrict MACC's investigation during his time in office, including closing the case.
Najib's lead counsel Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah however argued with the witness that she did not have direct evidence to prove that Najib made the instructions.
The matter was raised during cross-examination at Najib's 1MDB graft trial here on Tuesday (May 28) when Shafee questioned Nur Aida if there were any restrictions from Najib during the investigation.
Shafee: Do you agree that during the investigation by the police and the MACC, there were no restrictions from Najib?
Nur Aida: For MACC, yes (there was). Among the actions Najib took when he was the prime minister was to change the MACC chief commissioner, made arrests on MACC officers and lastly, (former attorney general) Tan Sri Mohamed Apandi Ali closed the case even when MACC recommended further action.
Shafee: Let's go through this one by one. I will show that this is only your misconception.
The lawyer then zoned into Nur Aida's answer about the no further action (NFA) instruction from Apandi.
The witness said the proof came from a document containing talking points that was seized from Najib's former special officer Datuk Amhari Efendi Nazaruddin.
"Amhari said these notes were prepared by (fugitive businessman) Low Taek Jho as per Najib's instructions.
"Although Low prepared the document, what was stated in the documents became true," Nur Aida said.
Shafee: But are there anything that showed the instructions (to NFA the case) came from Najib?
Nur Aida: I have no direct evidence for that.
Shafee then told the witness that she was being presumptuous with her observation.
"I am not making assumptions because everything that was stated in the notes really did happen. Amhari was Najib's own officer," Nur Aida said.
Shafee argued that Amhari had received bribes from Low.
Shafee: Amhari was 'bought' using Low's money. You surely can't say that Najib is involved in that too?
Nur Aida: I did not investigate that.
Shafee: You have no evidence to say that this is a direct order from Najib (to NFA the case).
Nur Aida: To me, the statement and the notes seized from Amhari are enough.
Shafee: You are an IO but you are talking like you're at a coffeeshop.
Nur Aida: This is not a coffeshop, Tan Sri. Yes, there were no direct instructions. But in the investigation, as a whole, it did happen.
Presiding judge Justice Collin Lawrence Sequerah then interjected, saying that the witness was maintaining her position.
"Leave it to submissions," the judge told Shafee.
Najib, 70, is on trial for 25 charges in total - four for abuse of power that allegedly brought him the financial benefit to the tune of RM2.28bil; and 21 for money laundering involving the same amount of money.
The hearing continues. - The Star
Jho Low listed 1MDB ‘damage control’ measures in note, court hears
V Anbalagan-28 May 2024, 03:49 PM
The note states that the MACC chief should be replaced, its officers arrested or transferred, and called for the 1MDB investigation to be closed.
A seized note, prepared by fugitive businessman Jho Low after 1MDB’s financial scandal came to light in 2015, proposed several ‘damage control’ measures, a witness said in Najib Razak’s corruption trial.
KUALA LUMPUR: Najib Razak’s 1MDB corruption trial heard today that fugitive financier Low Taek Jho, or Jho Low, had outlined several “damage control” measures in a note prepared after the company’s financial scandal came to light in 2015.
Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) investigating officer Nur Aida Arifin, the prosecution’s 49th witness, told the High Court here that the note was seized in a raid conducted at the home of Najib’s former special officer, Amhari Efendi Nazaruddin.
The note called for the MACC chief to be replaced, its officers arrested or transferred, and for investigations into 1MDB to be closed.
The existence of the note had been previously confirmed by Amhari, the eighth prosecution witness, in his testimony in 2019.
Under cross-examination, Najib’s lawyer, Shafee Abdullah, sought to establish that there was no evidence to show the instructions had come from Najib himself.
Shafee: Do you agree no instructions came from Najib?
Aida: As far as MACC is concerned, there was, when Najib was the prime minister, as outlined in the note prepared by Low.
Shafee: What about the decision to classify the 1MDB investigation as (requiring) “no further action”?
Aida: That came from then attorney-general Apandi Ali.
Shafee: You earlier said it was an instruction from Najib?
Aida: Through Amhari, an officer of Najib.
Shafee: You are the investigating officer, but you are talking as if you are in a coffee shop.
Aida: This is not a coffee shop. There is no direct evidence but my comprehensive investigation revealed there was (an instruction from Najib).
Trial judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah then told Shafee to leave the matter for submissions, saying the witness was maintaining her stand.
In its opening statement, the prosecution claimed that Najib had been in cahoots with Low to steal millions of ringgit from 1MDB. It also described Low as Najib’s mirror image.
During examination-in-chief, Aida had said senior deputy public prosecutor Dzulkifli Ahmad had been appointed as the anti-graft agency’s chief commissioner in July 2016, replacing Abu Kassim Mohamed.
At the time, MACC’s investigations into the 1MDB and the SRC International corruption cases came to a halt although the anti-graft body’s oversight committee said the probes should continue.
In July 2015, a special task force comprising officers from the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC), MACC, Bukit Aman federal police headquarters and Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) began a probe as reports emerged that large amounts of money had been remitted from overseas into Najib’s private accounts.
In January 2016, Apandi cleared Najib of any criminal activity involving the entry of RM2.6 billion in 1MDB-linked funds and RM42 million originating from SRC International Sdn Bhd into his personal bank accounts.
Apandi, who replaced Abdul Gani Patail as attorney-general, announced that he had thoroughly studied the papers submitted to him by MACC and ordered the cases closed.
Najib was eventually charged with corruption and abuse of power in 2018 after Pakatan Harapan came to power in the 14th general election.
He is facing 25 charges of abuse of power and money laundering over RM2.28 billion of 1MDB funds deposited into his AmBank accounts between February 2011 and December 2014.
The hearing continues.
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