KUALA LUMPUR — As Azizul Adzani Abdul Ghafar returned to the witness stand today in the RM42 million SRC International Sdn Bhd corruption trial, the Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) manager was interrogated on why an AmBank branch manager had provided details of specific transactions if they were unsolicited.
In the morning proceedings of Day Three of the trial, Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s lawyer Harvinderjit Singh asked Azizul why the Jalan Raja Chulan AmBank branch manager R. Uma Devi handed over documents on specific bank transactions if the central bank had not asked for it in a 2015 money-laundering probe.
Azizul is the second prosecution witness in Najib’s trial over RM42 million of funds belonging to SRC International Sdn Bhd.
In response to Harvinderjit’s repeated questions, Azizul said that he had not asked Uma Devi for details on specific transactions of accounts at the bank during the July 6, 2015 raid.
Azizul, who was the lead raiding officer in the 2015 raid, said he had asked Uma Devi for all documents — including on transactions — related to a list of bank accounts.
These bank accounts included four of Najib’s personal accounts, three accounts belonging to SRC International and an account belonging to SRC International’s subsidiary Gandingan Mentari Sdn Bhd.
Azizul today confirmed he had received eight folders containing details such as the form for the opening of these eight accounts together with supporting documents at around 11am on July 6, 2015.
Azizul said he had waited at the AmBank branch until night time, where Uma Devi then presented him with two sets of documents which he recorded as having received at 9.15pm and 9.30pm respectively.
In the records of the additional bank documents given, Azizul had listed the documents as having specific dates for specific transactions or banking instructions.
Harvinderjit however cast doubt on Azizul’s recount of events on the day of the raid and the idea that Uma Devi would have produced the specific bank transaction details voluntarily and of her own volition.
“You don’t seem to be telling the whole story,” he said, claiming Azizul’s memory of the raid about four years ago was “selective”.
“All of a sudden, 10 hours later, Uma Devi comes out of the office, realises you are there, gives you six transactions with specific dates and specific amounts.
“We are all quite experienced, why don’t you come out with the truth?” he asked.
But Azizul maintained that he had not informed the AmBank branch manager that he needed details on specific banking transactions.
The two sets of additional documents
The first set of additional documents that Uma Devi had handed over at 9.15pm comprised of 10 documents, including an account opening form for an account with the number 2110020090481.
The other documents are four items named “single credit (confirmation advice)” with transaction amounts of RM40 million (dated December 24, 2014), RM5 million (February 5, 2015), RM27 million (December 26, 2014), RM5 million (December 26, 2014).
The documents also included a withdrawal transfer slip for RM39.7 million (January 9, 2015) and an instruction letter with the same date and in relation to the same amount.
The remaining documents are a withdrawal transfer slip dated February 13, 2015 for RM10 million, an instruction letter dated February 13, 2015 over RM10 million, and a deposit slip dated December 24, 2014 over the sum of RM40 million.
It is currently unclear where the funds moved to or were from, or if there was any other funds movement involved.
The second set of documents that Azizul recorded as having received at 9.30pm involved written instructions dated August 26, 2013 to close two accounts with the last three digits of 481 and 694, as well as a receipt of the closure of the 481 account on August 30, 2013.
The identity or identities of these two accounts were not made clear.
MALAY MAIL
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