The criminal trial of former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak involving the alleged abuse of power and laundering of 1MDB funds enters its second day at the Kuala Lumpur High Court.
Malaysiakini brings you live reports of the proceedings.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
- Judge denies request to end daily hearings early
- Najib's special officer, 1MDB personalities appointed to energy subsidiary
- Witness: MACC asked for info on four local companies
- SSM officer identifies TIA/1MDB registration documents
- Judge rejects prosecution's request to adjourn trial to next week
- Najib gave cheque to help the poor Malays in Batu Kawan - Noor
- I received RM100k party contribution from Najib: Batu Kawan Umno chief
- 'Najib didn't issue cheques directly to prevent circulation on FB'
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5pm - Thank you for following our live report today.
Court adjourned to Tuesday
4.47pm - Kuala Lumpur High Court judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah allows proceedings to adjourn to Tuesday at 9.30am.
Deputy public prosecutor Mohamad Mustafa P Kunyalam is expected to resume the examination-in-chief of the seventh witness and Companies Commission officer Rafidah Yahya in regards to more than 20 documents linked to 1MDB.
Judge denies request to end daily hearings early
4.05pm - As the court returns from a short break, the defence makes a request to shorten daily hearings, as the accused Najib Abdul Razak is finding it difficult to sit on the wooden bench for long periods.
The request comes after judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah (photo) declines deputy public prosecutor Mohamad Mustaffa P Kunyalam's request to cut short today's session at 4.30pm.
Lead defence lawyer Muhammad Shafee Abdullah first cites documentation issues in making the request, before touching on his client's health.
"But more critical is that my client (had been) sitting on a pure plank...almost every day.
"As soon as Yang Arif allowed for adjournment (just now), he had to do some stretching, if not it’s going to get worse," he tells the judge.
Shafee adds that he had raised the same issue in Najib's SRC International trial.
Sequerah said he can only allow court to be adjourned at 4.45pm today.
Shafee then asks the judge to consider cutting short all future hearings to 4.30pm.
Sequerah denies the request, but tells the lawyer that he can consider allowing periodical breaks if required.
Najib's special officer, 1MDB personalities appointed to energy subsidiary
3.38pm - The Kuala Lumpur High Court hears today that Najib Abdul Razak's special officer Wan Ahmad Shihab Ismail Wan Ismail was made a director in energy producer Tanjong Energy Holdings Sdn Bhd.
1MDB purchased Tanjong Energy Holdings from tycoon Ananda Krishnan in early March 2012.
The court also hears that two personalities linked to 1MDB, Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi and Terence Geh, were also appointed as managing director and CEO (Shahrol), and deputy chief financial officer (Geh).
Companies Commission officer Rafidah Yahya confirms this during examination-in-chief by deputy public prosecutor Mohamad Mustaffa P Kunyalam in regard to to the company's Form 49, which has details of its directorship.
Mustaffa: In Tanjong Energy Holdings, Ahmad Ismail Wan Ismail, the special officer to prime minister (Najib) was made director on May 22, 2012, as well as Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi being made managing director and CEO, and the appointment of (Terence) Geh Choh Heng as director (on May 22, 2012).
Rafidah: Correct.
Witness: MACC asked for info on four local companies
2.45pm - The court hears from Companies Commission officer Rafidah Yahaya (photo) that the MACC requested information on four companies last year to facilitate their investigation into the 1MDB scandal.
Rafidah says that the request was made by MACC officer Shahrul Nizam Abdul Aziz on April 22, 2019.
The companies include Powertek Investment Holding Sdn Bhd, Merpati Energy (Langat) Sdn Bhd, and Mastika Lagenda Sdn Bhd.
Rafidah tells the court that she then processed the request and printed out documents needed by MACC and handed them to the officer.
Under examination-in-chief by deputy public prosecutor Mohamad Mustaffa P Kunyalam, the witness then proceeds to identify these documents in court to be tendered as evidence.
Proceedings resume
2.42pm - Proceedings resume.
Court breaks for lunch
1pm - The court breaks for lunch. Companies Commission officer Rafidah Yahaya is expected to return to the witness stand to continue her testimony after the break.
SSM officer identifies TIA/1MDB registration documents
12.05pm - The prosecution calls its the eighth witness, Companies Commission officer Rafidah Yahaya.
Rafidah starts her testimony by identifying documents that she had surrendered to MACC on May 28, 2018, including the business registration certificate for Terengganu Investment Authority Bhd, which later came to be known as 1MDB.
Judge rejects prosecution's request to adjourn trial to next week
11.30am - After the prosecution's sixth witness Mohd Noor Ahmad is released from the stand, lead prosecutor Gopal Sri Ram requests for today's proceedings to be adjourned.
He informs the court that the prosecution is expecting a lengthy session with the seventh witness, as there are 177 documents to be tendered.
"If it is convenient to My Lordship, we would like to take it to Tuesday morning," says Sri Ram.
Judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah, however, is not keen on adjourning the trial.
He says they have already lost "several days," referring to the trial being postponed in the last few weeks.
"We will start today. We already lost several days. I’m sure it will spill to Tuesday," says the judge.
Sequerah then allows for a short break for the prosecution to prepare for the next witness.
Najib gave cheque to help the poor Malays in Batu Kawan - Noor
11.20am - The court hears from Batu Kawan Umno division chief Mohd Noor Ahmad that a sum of RM100,000 which the division received from then party president Najib Abdul Razak in 2013 was used to conduct activities to help those in need in the constituency.
The witness, testifying under cross-examination by defence counsel Muhammad Shafee Abdullah (photo), agrees to the lawyer's suggestion that the Malays in Penang were among the less fortunate in the country compared to other states.
He also agrees that the Malays in the northern state were in need of such assistance for their livelihood.
Shafee: One more question. Although I myself am also from Penang... would you agree that the economical state of the Malays in Penang is not very good?
Mohd Noor: Yes, I agree.
Shafee: In Malaysia, one of the states where (the Malays) are still being left behind (economically) is Penang?
Mohd Noor: Agree.
Shafee: And they need assistance to uplift their livelihood?
Mohd Noor: True.
Shafee: And during that time when you received the funds from Najib, the Penang state government was not under Barisan Nasional?
Mohd Noor: Yes.
Shafee: And you received this donation to help the people in Batu Kawan?
Mohd Noor: True.
The witness also testifies that the Umno division's bank account had been frozen by the authorities for about a year over the case.
I received RM100k party contribution from Najib: Batu Kawan Umno chief
11.05am - Batu Kawan Umno chief Mohd Noor Ahmad (photo) testifies that he received an RM100,000 cheque as a contribution to the division from then-party president Najib Abdul Razak at the Prime Minister's Office on Aug 6, 2013.
The sixth witness says this during examination-in-chief by deputy public prosecutor Najwa Bistamam.
“I informed the party president, who was also then-prime minister, at the Prime Minister's Office.
"It was on Aug 6, 2013," Noor says in relation to a cheque made out by Najib to the division as a contribution.
The cheque, dated Aug 7, 2013, is a subject matter of one of the 21 charges of money laundering against Najib in the RM2.28 billion 1MDB trial.
Batu Kawan Umno division chief takes the stand
11am - Former political secretary to Najib Abdul Razak, Wong Nai Chee, finishes his testimony and is released from the witness stand.
The prosecution calls in their sixth witness, Batu Kawan Umno Mohd Noor Ahmad, to testify.
'Najib didn't issue cheques directly to prevent circulation on FB'
10.15am - Wong Nai Chee testifies that former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak did not issue cheques to two entities directly to prevent it from being circulated on Facebook.
During examination-in-chief, Najib's former political secretary tells lead prosecutor Gopal Sri Ram (photo) that the cheques were issued to activist Lim Soon Peng instead.
Lim then relayed the cheques to Akademi Kewartawanan and Informasi and AD Network.
The first recipient is involved in the publication of a Chinese weekly, while AD Network is the administrator of the Ah Jib Gor Facebook page.
"If a personal cheque issued by the PM (Najib), we do not want it to circulate on Facebook.
"We would rather pay someone whom we trust, so he (Lim) can pay (to the two entities)," Wong says.
Among the cheques issued was a payment for RM246,000 by Najib on Aug 7, 2013.
10.05am - The proceedings begin with the prosecution calling their fifth witness, Najib’s former political secretary Wong Nai Chee (photo).
9.30am - Najib Abdul Razak enters the court and takes a seat at the front row of the public gallery.
Also seen in court are lead defence counsel Muhammad Shafee Abdullah and lead prosecutor Gopal Sri Ram.
Najib and his defence lawyers attended another matter before High Court judge Mohamed Zaini Mazlan earlier this morning.
As former premier Najib Abdul Razak’s RM2.28 billion 1MDB trial enters its second day, a line has been drawn in the sand between the prosecution and the defence.
Yesterday, lead prosecutor Gopal Sri Ram’s opening statement described an “elaborate charade” to enrich the accused with the purported collusion of his “mirror image,” fugitive businessperson Low Taek Jho.
Unperturbed, lead defence counsel Muhammad Shafee Abdullah yesterday declared that the prosecution still needs to prove that Najib knew that the funds originated from 1MDB, instead of being a donation from a “Saudi King."
The hearing before Kuala Lumpur High Court judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah may see at least two witnesses being called to testify today.
This includes Najib’s former political secretary, Wong Nai Chee and Batu Kawan Umno division chief Mohd Noor Ahmad. - Mkini
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