TWO foreign jewellers are in a state over the unknown whereabouts of millions of ringgit’s worth of jewellery that they said were delivered to Rosmah Mansor but for which they were yet to be paid.
Their lawyers said they had not been told by the police as to whether the items were seized in May along with some 12,000 pieces of jewellery during raids on premises linked to former prime minister Najib Razak.
Police had confiscated 2,200 rings, 1,400 necklaces, 2,100 bracelets, 2,800 pairs of earrings, 1,600 brooches and 14 tiaras. The haul, the biggest in Malaysian history, was valued at RM1.1 billion.
Lebanese jeweller Samer Halimeh has filed a suit seeking compensation for 44 pieces of jewellery worth RM60 million he had handed over to Rosmah, for which she has not paid. Rosmah has filed an application to strike off the suit, saying anti-money laundering laws did not allow claims for assets that had been seized.
In his recent affidavit, Halimeh said he had yet to receive confirmation from police that they had possession of the jewellery in question.
Dubai-based jeweller Adi Hasan AlFardan is seeking to recover jewellery worth more than US$5 million (RM20.75 million), which was delivered to Rosmah. He also claims he has not been paid.
The missing pieces are a yellow diamond cushion-cut necklace, a pair of yellow diamond cushion-cut earrings and a yellow diamond heart-shaped necklace.
His lawyer, Ashok Kandiah said two letters were sent to the police seeking the whereabouts of the jewellery but he had yet to receive a reply. He said it was stated in the letters that Rosmah had not paid for the pieces and that no title deeds were also stated that no payment was made by Rosmah and that the diamonds did not have no title deeds.
In a letter dated July 7 to Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) director Amar Singh, l AlFardan’s lawyers wrote that their client met Rosmah on December 15 last year at the Grand Hyatt of Dubai to show her jewellery available for sale.
After Rosmah requested AlFardan to deliver the three items to her in Kuala Lumpur, he made four trips to Malaysia – on December 20, 2017, January 30, February 10, and April 7 this year.
On three of the trips, he delivered jewellery items for her consideration, the letter, sighted by The Malaysian Insight, said.
Upon arrival at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA), individuals who identified themselves as officers from the Prime Minister’s Department met AlFardan at the arrival gate and escorted him through the immigration and customs checkpoints, the letter said.
After the election, AlFardan travelled to Malaysia on June 20 to meet with Rosmah in Kuala Lumpur, where he was informed that the three jewellery items were among those seized by the police and she was in no position to pay for them, the letter said.
In his dealings with Rosmah, AlFardan said he believed her to be a “person of prominence”, with a high net worth and integrity, the letter said.
Ashok said the legal team is “hopeful” of a breakthrough, saying police should be able to identify and authenticate the items, as they were issued certificates by the Gemological Institute of America.
“We’re keeping all options open towards the recovery of the items or towards the value of the items,” the lawyer said.
Meanwhile, a police source told The Malaysian Insight that the investigation into the seizures in May is still ongoing.
The source added there was no need to for the police to send any confirmation letter to the lawyers, adding the the items are still under police custody.
“The police can hold items seized in connection with its 1Malaysia Development Bhd investigation until May,” the source told The Malaysian Insight.
“There is no need to send anything to the lawyers.
“The deputy IGP Noor Rashid has explained this.”
Deputy Inspector-General of Police Noor Rashid Ibrahim had previously said the Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act 2001 allowed the police to hold seized items for one year while investigations continued.
– https://www.themalaysianinsight.com
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