FORMER SRC International Sdn Bhd director Suboh Md Yassin fled the country in 2015 as he was afraid of Najib Razak and what the former prime minister could do to him and his family, the Kuala Lumpur High Court heard today.
Suboh, who is under a witness protection programme, fled to Bangkok soon after news of the 1Malaysia Development Berhad scandal broke and investigators began raiding premises and banks related to its subsidiary SRC International.
“I was fearful with what was happening and of Najib, who was in power as prime minister then. I did not know what would happen to me and my family.
“I made the decision to flee to Bangkok with my wife and we stayed there for about a month,” he said, adding that former SRC International CEO Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil had urged him to leave.
“At that time, Nik Faisal contacted me and he told me the SRC International case involved Najib, and he said, ‘You go away’.”
The 68-year-old Suboh said he had intended to turn himself in then as he felt responsible for certain actions by SRC International that he felt were “not right”.
“I did not resign because as a director I felt responsible for the funds that were invested overseas,” he said, adding that he had wanted to stay on the board to ensure that the funds were returned from overseas.
“In 2015, I contacted the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) to set up an appointment to explain the situation relating to SRC International, which was being investigated.
“In that year, when the SRC issue became hot, I wanted to step forward to offer what I knew.
“Before I went to the MACC office, I received a phone call from an unidentified person, who said he was from the MACC and he told me not to go to the MACC office as I had planned and directed me to leave Malaysia.”
Suboh told the court the man sounded Malay.
He said he bore the costs of his stay in Bangkok where he met an unidentified man who offered flight tickets for him to flee again.
“In Bangkok, I met a Thai man who gave my wife and I flight tickets to Abu Dhabi in United Arab Emirates. My wife and I boarded the flight to Abu Dhabi from Bangkok.
“At Abu Dhabi, I was taken to the Rosewood hotel where I stayed for more than a week.
“All the flight and lodging costs were taken care of, but I did not know by who.”
Suboh said he later got on a flight back to Bangkok and then to Malaysia, after which Nik Faisal made contact again.
“After I returned, I was contacted by Nik Faisal who told me to flee Malaysia again to evade enforcement authorities.
“I made the decision not to run again and remained in Malaysia to assist enforcement officers.”
Suboh surrendered to the MACC in June last year, about a month after Pakatan Harapan swept into power.
He has been kept in an undisclosed location until his appearance in court today.
Suboh, who told the court he is unwell due to heart issues, said the last time Nik Faisal contacted him was “after the general election”, referring to the May 9 polls last year.
It was after the polls that the MACC re-opened investigations into SRC International, its second after the 2015 investigations.
He added that he did not lodge any police report relating to SRC International.
“That’s because the person who called me, said he is from MACC. So, there was no need for me to go to the police,” he said when questioned by deputy public prosecutor Ishak Mohd Yusoff.
Najib was in the dock today, with in a black and a maroon tie. He remained expressionless as Suboh testified.
His charges in this trial relate to the RM4 billion in loans issued to SRC International in 2011 and 2012, from which he is accused of receiving RM42 million in his personal accounts in 2014 and 2015.
Najib, 66, faces three counts of criminal breach of trust, three counts of money-laundering and one count of abuse of power.
He is represented by a dozen lawyers led by Muhammad Shafee Abdullah.
Attorney-General Tommy Thomas leads the prosecution while Justice Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali presides over the trial.
– https://www.themalaysianinsight.com
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