The criminal trial of former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak involving the alleged misappropriation of funds from SRC International Sdn Bhd enters its 45th day today at the High Court in Kuala Lumpur.
Malaysiakini brings you live reports of the proceedings.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
- Jho Low called Najib 'big boss' - witness
- I am only a 'ciku', Nik Faisal tells AmBank ex-manager
- Jho Low 'desperate' to stop Najib's cheques from bouncing - witness
- Jho Low controlled Najib's 3 AmBank accounts, says witness
- I spoke more with Jho Low about Najib's accounts - witness
- Banker refused to follow Jho Low’s orders to destroy chequebooks
- 'Pie' and 'satay' - how Jho Low refers to US dollar, ringgit transactions
- Jho Low seems to be decision-maker with Najib's accounts
- Money flowing into Najib's account not hidden from authorities
- RM1.13b transferred into Najib's account between 2011 and 2013
- 'Najib, in his state of mind, believed RM42m to be a donation’
- Witness confirms US$100m transferred into Najib's account in 2011
- Cross-examination of former AmBank manager Yu resumes
- Defence will raise purported irrelevance of witness testimony
- Najib admitted to receiving RM42m in his bank accounts - witness
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5.39pm - Thank you for following our live report today.
Proceedings adjourn
5.18pm - Kuala Lumpur High Court judge Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali allows proceedings to adjourn for the day and to resume at 9am on Wednesday.
Nazlan does this after being informed by defence lawyer Harvinderjit Singh that he still has at least another day and a half's worth of cross-examining to do on former AmBank relationship manager Joanna Yu.
Jho Low called Najib 'big boss' - witness
4.55pm: Former AmBank relationship manager Joanna Yu testifies that fugitive businessperson Low Taek Jho referred to former premier Najib Abdul Razak as "Big Boss".
She tells lawyer Harvinderjit Singh this during cross-examination over a BlackBerry message Low (photo) sent her on May 30, 2014.
Harvinderjit: On May 30, 2014, Low sent you this: '50 American Pies incoming.'
Yu: He said 'big boss' called.
Harvinderjit: Who was 'big boss'?
Yu: The account holder (Najib).
Yu later makes the whole court burst into laughter when she remarks "I am not sure who is bigger boss."
I am only a ‘ciku’, Nik Faisal tells AmBank ex-manager
4.45pm - The court hears from former AmBank relationship manager Joanna Yu that Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil (photo), who was mandated to operate former premier Najib Abdul Razak's AmBank accounts, had told her that he was only a small fry.
Under cross-examination by defence lawyer Harvinderjit Singh, she agrees that Nik Faisal had told her in a BlackBerry message that he was only a “ciku”.
Harvinderjit: At 10.13am (Feb 15, 2015), Nik's message to you: "I ciku only mah." He is telling you he is nobody.
Yu: That's what he said, but I didn't agree with him.
In his attempt to establish that Nik Faisal was merely following orders from fugitive businessperson Low Taek Jho in managing Najib's bank accounts, Harvinderjit also tries to establish that Nik Faisal had insisted that Yu inform Low about insufficient funds in said accounts.
Harvinderjit: On Jan 16 (2015), at 9am he (Nik) told you that somebody needs to know that funds are needed?
Yu: Yes.
Harvinderjit: He is telling you that there was a need to tell Low that RM3.5 million is needed in the account?
Yu: Yes.
Jho Low 'desperate' to stop Najib's cheques from bouncing - witness
4.30pm - Former AmBank relationship manager Joanna Yu testifies that fugitive businessperson Low Taek Jho seemed desperate to prevent cheques from former premier Najib Abdul Razak's accounts from bouncing.
She concurs with Harvinderjit (photo), who poses her a question based on the chat logs between her and Low in Oct 2014.
Harvinderjit: In 2014, (a message from) Low to you stated, "Please clear cheques. Do not bounce cheques whatever you do. Funds are wired"?
Yu: Yes.
Harvinderjit: Then on the same date, he messaged, "Aiyoh, cannot reject lah. Need to clear. Just hold on first". All of that happened (on the same day).
Yu: Yes.
Harvinderjit: There was some form of desperation in this message?
Yu: I told him the cut-off time was 5.30pm.
Harvinderjit: (Low was) so desperate?
Yu: I believe so.
Earlier, the court had heard how Najib's accounts were constantly overdrawn, often forcing Yu to contact Low or account mandate holder Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil to resolve the issue.
Jho Low controlled Najib's 3 AmBank accounts, says witness
4.20pm - It was businessperson Low Taek Jho who was in control of Najib Abdul Razak's three AmBank accounts ending with the numbers 906, 880 and 694, the court hears from Joanna Yu.
Under cross-examination by defence lawyer Harvinderjit Singh, the former AmBank relationship manager agrees that this was the case based on communications regarding the accounts between her and Low.
Yu also agrees that Low had told her that he was in communication with the former premier as the account holder, although she could not verify whether this was true.
I spoke more with Jho Low about Najib's accounts - witness
3.24pm - Former AmBank relationship manager Joanna Yu (photo) agrees with the defence’s assertion that she communicated more with fugitive businessperson Low Taek Jho than SRC International CEO Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil about Najib Abdul Razak's accounts.
She agrees with lawyer Harvinderjit Singh on the matter, despite Nik Faisal being the mandate holder for Najib's accounts.
Harvinderjit: What you cannot disagree with is (that) the frequency (of communication) between you and Low far outweighed the communication between you and Nik Faisal on Najib's accounts. Agree?
Yu: Agree.
Banker refused to follow Jho Low’s orders to destroy chequebooks
3.10pm - Former AmBank relationship manager Joanna Yu said she had refused to follow fugitive financier Low Taek Jho's instructions to destroy old chequebooks linked to ex-premier Najib Abdul Razak's three current accounts with the bank in 2013.
The 54th witness tells lawyer Harvinderjit Singh that despite instructions from Low, she merely passed the old chequebooks to the Jalan Raja Chulan branch of AmBank.
Harvinderjit: Having returned the old chequebooks to you (in Aug 2013), Jho Low instructed you to destroy all old chequebooks?
Yu: That was the instruction.
Harvinderjit: But you did not do it?
Yu: Just passed it to the branch.
Harvinderjit: You did not actually destroy the chequebooks?
Yu: I would not destroy chequebooks.
Harvinderjit: Why?
Yu: There is an order with implication to destroy, but why should we? Just take it to the branch.
Harvinderjit's questions are based on BlackBerry chat logs between Yu and Low in Aug 2013 in relation to Najib's three current accounts ending with the numbers 880, 906, and 898.
Proceedings resume
2.42pm - Proceedings resume after the lunch break.
Court breaks for lunch
1pm - Court breaks for lunch. Proceedings to resume at 2.30pm.
'Pie' and 'satay' - how Jho Low refers to US dollar, ringgit transactions
12:54pm - Low Taek Jho used 'pie' and 'satay' to refer to US dollar and ringgit transactions, testifies Joanna Yu.
Harvinderjit: Why use these nomenclatures of 'pie' and 'satay'?
Yu: That is what Low used (in the BlackBerry messenger chats).
Harvinderjit: 'Pie' is US dollar, 'satay' is ringgit?
Yu: Yes
In the BlackBerry chat logs being referred to, the term 'pie' and 'satay' tend to occur especially in relation to the massive inflow of foreign money into Najib Abdul Razak's account.
Jho Low seems to be decision-maker with Najib's accounts
12.25pm - Former AmBank relationship manager Joanna Yu says fugitive businessperson Low Taek Jho seems to be the person issuing instructions on Najib Abdul Razak's bank accounts.
Yu says that SRC International CEO Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil, the accounts' mandate holder, is merely seen to as formalising the instructions.
Money flowing into Najib's account not hidden from authorities
11.55am - Under cross-examination by defence lawyer Harvinderjit Singh, former AmBank relationship manager Joanna Yu says there was "nothing to hide" in regards to the massive inflow of funds into then-premier Najib Abdul Razak's (photo) account between 2011 and 2013.
Haverderjit questions Yu if she made any efforts to hide the transactions from 2011 to 2013 from the authorities.
Yu: There was nothing to hide.
Harvinderjit: A lot of people knew about this amount?
Yu: The relevant department handling the current account, the bosses, they knew.
Harvinderjit: If what (former AmBank managing director) Cheah (Tek Kuang) told you was true, even the (then) Bank Negara governor?
Yu: Yes.
RM1.13b transferred into Najib's account between 2011 and 2013
11.45am - The court hears from Joanna Yu, a former AmBank relationship manager, that an account belonging to former premier Najib Abdul Razak received US$369.99 million in several transactions between 2011 and Jan 10, 2013.
She confirms that the amount is equivalent to RM1.136 billion, in response to defence lawyer Harvinderjit Singh's question on the total amount of foreign funds transferred into Najib's account ending in 694.
'Najib, in his state of mind, believed RM42m to be a donation'
11.15am - Deputy public prosecutor V Sithambaram raises his concern over the defence's line of questioning on AmBank relationship manager Joanna Yu.
Sithambaram says defence lawyer Harvinderjit Singh has been asking Yu to confirm banking transactions related to Najib Abdul Razak's AmBank account ending 694 that took place before 2013.
The deputy public prosecutor questions the relevance of this, as the charges against Najib concern the RM42 million that went into two other accounts opened in 2013.
"Perhaps my learned friend can inform relevancy. Otherwise, it would be waste of time," says Sithambaram.
Harvinderjit counters that the defence has managed to establish a series of transactions where fugitive businessperson Low Taek Jho was communicating with Yu in regards to funds transferred into Najib's accounts.
He says the court should look into the transactions holistically from the time Najib's first account was opened until the closure of all his accounts.
This, again, prompts Sithambaram to question the relevancy of the 2011 transactions to the current case.
"This money... was used up well before the charges. Where is the relevance?" asks Sithambaram.
Harvinderjit replies that the money in Najib's new accounts is related to the current charges, as it appeared to have originated from the same source as the previous transactions in 2011.
"Even if (the money was) used up, that is not the point. The point is, my client in his mind (thinks that the money he spent) was a donation, then this is relevant.
"His state of mind, this is where we are going with this," says Harvinderjit.
Witness confirms US$100m transferred into Najib's account in 2011
11am - Joanna Yu tells the court that US$100 million was transferred into Najib Abdul Razak's AmBank current account ending 694 in 2011.
Under cross-examination by defence lawyer Harvinderjit Singh, the former AmBank relationship manager testifies that the money was received in four tranches of US$10 million, US$10 million, US$50 million and US$30 million.
She also confirms there were corresponding BlackBerry Messenger chats with fugitive businessperson Low Taek Jho on these transactions.
Cross-examination of former AmBank manager Yu resumes
10.33am - 54th witness and former AmBank Relationship Manager Joanna Yu takes the stand for the resumption of cross-examination by lawyer Harvinderjit Singh.
Defence will raise purported irrelevance of witness testimony
9.57am - Lead defence lawyer Muhammad Shafee Abdullah (photo) informs the court that the defence will later submit that lawyer Ranjit Singh's testimony is irrelevant to Najib Abdul Razak's current RM42 million criminal case.
Shafee says this prior to defence lawyer Harvinderjit Singh's cross-examination the 55th witness.
In turn, deputy public prosecutor V Sithambaram replies that the prosecution disagrees with this and will later counter submit that the oral evidence is relevant.
Earlier, Ranjit, who had acted for ex-MCA president Ling Liong Sik in a suit against him by Najib, testifies that former prime minister had admitted in the suit that RM42 million flowed was deposited into his bank accounts.
Najib admitted to receiving RM42m in his bank accounts - witness
9.48am - Lawyer Ranjit Singh told the court that during Najib Abdul Razak's suit against former MCA president Ling Liong Sik, the premier admitted that not only was RM42 million deposited into his accounts, but that he had also received US$700 million.
The 55th witness tells deputy public prosecutor V Sithambaram that Najib's statement was made in an affidavit responding to Ling's defence and counterclaim back in February 2016.
Ranjit says Najib in his response to Ling's defence and counterclaim, had conceded that RM42 million went into his accounts, but denied any knowledge that the funds were channelled via two intermediaries, Gandingan Mentari and Ihsan Perdana.
He says around 2015, the Wall Street Journal and Sarawak Report reported that the RM42 million flowed into Najib's accounts via the two intermediaries.
The lawyer also says that Najib, in his affidavit in relation to the suit, replied that the US$700 million which was also deposited in his accounts from an overseas source was a personal donation.
Ranjit, who acted for Ling in the suit, says that the matter was later settled with both Najib and Ling withdrawing their suit and counterclaim with no liberty to file afresh.
Proceedings begin with 55th witness taking the stand
9.21am - Ranjit Singh testifies he had represented former MCA president Ling Liong Sik in a suit filed by Najib.
9.17am - Deputy public prosecutor V Sithambaram informs the court that the 55th witness, lawyer Ranjit Singh, will take the stand today for examination-in-chief, instead of the 54th witness, former AmBank relationship manager Joanna Yu.
9.15am - Najib Abdul Razak enters the dock as proceedings begin.
Najib arrives in court
9.07am - Accused Najib Abdul Razak arrives in court and takes a seat at the front row of the public gallery.
Awaiting the beginning of proceedings are Najib's lead defence counsel Muhammad Shafee Abdullah and other members of the defence.
Also present are Attorney-General Tommy Thomas and other deputy public prosecutors.
Attention today will be on the approach adopted by the defence in the cross-examination of former AmBank relationship manager Joanna Yu at former premier Najib Abdul Razak's RM42 million SRC International trial today.
As proceedings before Kuala Lumpur High Court judge Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali enter the 45th day, the defence will have benefited from going through a trove of BlackBerry chats made available to them on Thursday last week.
On Thursday, deputy public prosecutor V Sithambaram informed the court that the prosecution had provided the defence with the chat logs, which the latter previously said contained recorded conversations related to Najib's seven charges of abuse of power, graft, and money laundering.
Yu, the 54th prosecution witness, delivered a series of critical testimonies last week.
She said that fugitive financier Low Taek Jho had asked her to hide Najib’s identity in the former premier's account statements with AmBank in 2011.
Yu also testified that she refused to delete her chat history despite being asked by Low to do so, and that Najib’s accounts were closed in 2015 due to red flags and bad press over the allegedly large transfers of foreign currency into the accounts. - Mkini
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