Accuser in Morais murder case has committed perjury - Najib

One of the accused in the murder trial of deputy public prosecutor Kevin Morais has committed perjury by implicating him in the crime, Najib Abdul Razak said today.

In a statement, the former prime minister said the authorities should ask the accused, S Ravi Chandaran, to name the prison officer whom he claimed had induced him with an offer of RM3.5 million, purportedly from Najib, to plead guilty to the murder.

Ravi should face charges for perjury if he fails to do so, added Najib.

"I read the report of the court proceedings on Oct 2 and was shocked with the unfounded allegations. I note with keen interest that Ravi also claimed that Colonel R Kunaseegaran, another accused, had also offered him RM1.5 million and that Richard Morais, a brother of the victim, had also offered another RM2 million for the same objective, a most unlikely scenario.

"These allegations are completely and utterly untrue, and I deny them unequivocally. This is a most damning statement, to say the least, and does not do any justice to the late Kevin Morais nor to me.

“It is most unkind for Ravi to perjure in that way attempting to take advantage of the current situation I am in and to further unfairly cause me reputational hurt," said the Pekan MP, further wondering if certain quarters had forced Ravi to make such allegations.

Najib urged the authorities to trace the unnamed prison warden referred to by Ravi and have his statement recorded to test the veracity of the accuser's claim.

"If Ravi cannot support his claim, I urge the authorities to charge Ravi for perjury.

"I am made to understand that neither the prosecution nor any of the defence counsel in the murder case believes Ravi’s bizarre allegations.

"Furthermore, I am reliably informed that the late Kevin Morais had no part in the investigations or supervision of the 1MDB or the SRC cases. This can easily be determined by a proper investigation."

Ravi, 47, who is the seventh accused in Morais' murder trial, had told the Kuala Lumpur High Court on Tuesday that the RM3.5 million offer was made to him by Najib, through a Prisons Department officer.

In response, Najib had called the Bernama article on the report "mischievous."

Concrete-filled drum

Besides Kunaseegaran and Ravi, R Dinishwaran, AK Thinesh Kumar, M Vishwanath and S Nimalan had pleaded not guilty to the murder of Morais during the victim's journey from Sentul to Subang Jaya on Sept 4, 2015.

All are charged under Section 302 read together with Section 34 of the Penal Code, which carries the mandatory death sentence upon conviction.

Morais’ body was found in a drum filled with concrete at Persiaran Subang Mewah, Subang Jaya, on Sept 16, 2015.

He was reported missing on Sept 4, 2015, and was last seen leaving his condominium in Menara Duta to drive to his office in Putrajaya

At the time of the murder, speculation linked the case to the 1MDB affair but the MACC has since confirmed that Morais (above) was not involved in any 1MDB probe while with the Attorney-General's Chambers.

The prosecution says that the Kunaseegaran had plotted the murder of Morais to prevent a corruption charge against him from going ahead. -Mkini