Najib had no reason to doubt RM2.28bil was Saudi donation, court hears

 

Najib Razak’s lawyer Tania Scivetti argued AmBank’s processing of the donation lent credibility to the former prime minister’s belief that the funds were a lawful gift rather than proceeds from illicit activities.

KUALA LUMPUR: 

The High Court today was told that Najib Razak believed the RM2.28 billion donation from Saudi Arabia was not unreasonable as AmBank, which handled the transaction, processed the funds under the understanding that they were a legitimate donation.

Najib’s counsel Tania Scivetti submitted that AmBank, as one of the major financial institutions, had a dedicated compliance department that processed the funds based on letters that purportedly supported the claim that the money originated from Arab royalty as a donation.

“The defence argues that this situation lent credibility to Najib’s belief that the funds were a lawful gift rather than proceeds from illicit activities.

It must be emphasised that RM2.28 billion is not a small amount that would go unnoticed and undetected. The sheer amount would be subject to scrutiny not just by the compliance department in AmBank but also by the sender’s compliance department; in this case, Tanore Finance Corporation,

 said Scivetti in her submission at the close of the prosecution’s case before Justice Collin Lawrence Sequerah.

Tanore is a company controlled by Eric Tan, allegedly an associate of fugitive businessman Low Taek Jho.

The US$620 million (RM2.28 billion) is the subject matter of the former prime minister’s four abuse of power charges.

Scivetti further argued that the sum of RM2.28 billion was also notified to Bank Negara Malaysia, which would have frozen the account if there had been any suspicion of unlawful activity.

“However, no red flags were raised in this instance. This clearly shows that Najib had a legitimate expectation that the money he received from Tanore was a genuine donation from Saudi Arabia and not associated with any unlawful activity.

“He had no reason to doubt the veracity of the donation letter or the identity of the donor, as both the banks had processed the transaction without any issue.

If there were any irregularity or illegality in the source of the funds, Najib would have expected the relevant authorities to alert him or take action, but none of that happened,

 said the lawyer.

Najib, 71, faces four charges of abusing his position to obtain RM2.28 billion from 1MDB funds at the AmIslamic Bank Bhd branch on Jalan Raja Chulan, Bukit Ceylon, between Feb 24, 2011, and Dec 19, 2014.

He also faces 21 money laundering charges involving the same amount at the same bank between March 22, 2013 and Aug 30, 2013.

Najib is charged under Section 23(1) of the MACC Act 2009 and Section 4(1)(a) of the Anti-Money Laundering and Anti-Terrorism Financing Act.

The submission continues tomorrow. - FMT