AmBank got uncomfortable with volume of cash going into Najib's accounts

NAJIB TRIAL | Banker Joanna Yu told the Kuala Lumpur High Court today that AmBank had at one point in 2014 become uncomfortable with the volume of cash deposited into former premier Najib Abdul Razak's bank accounts.

Yu, the relationship manager for Najib's accounts at the time, testified on the 41st day of his SRC International trial that this prompted AmBank to request a letter confirming the source of the funds.

She said the request was made to then-SRC International CEO Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil, the mandate holder for Najib's accounts.

During examination-in-chief, deputy public prosecutor V Sithambaram asked Yu to read out a Dec 24, 2014 letter from Nik Faisal authorising cash deposits into Najib's accounts.

"I confirm the money was from Datuk Seri's (Najib) personal funds," she said, reading out the letter from Nik Faisal.

Yu testified that this letter addressed the various cash deposits into three of Najib's accounts.

Sithambaram: Why was this letter written and given to the bank?

Yu: The bank actually requested it. I had, in my chats with Nik Faisal and (businessperson) Low Taek Jho, told them that the bank was uncomfortable with the volume of cash deposit made... I ask them to put in writing, and they wrote this letter.

Sithambaram: This is from the mandate holder of the account?

Yu: Yes. We needed to know the sources of the funds.

Yu also concurred that there were frequent cash deposits into Najib's accounts, and that it was uncommon practice by customers.

"Cash payments are allowed if there's genuine oversight. However, it is actually not common for people to do cash payments," she testified.

Yu confirmed that over a period of nine months, from June 2014 to March 2015, a total of RM12,379,063 in cash was deposited into Najib's accounts.

Asked who had arranged the deposits, she replied: "Nik Faisal or Low, but usually deposited by Kee Kok Thiam."

Kee had previously been identified as Low's associate, and was tasked with making cash deposits into Najib's accounts. He is the subject of a civil forfeiture suit in Malaysia.

Najib is facing three counts of criminal breach of trust, three money laundering charges and one abuse of power charge concerning a sum of RM42 million from SRC International. - Mkini