The criminal trial of former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak involving the alleged abuse of power and money laundering of 1MDB funds enters its 21st day today at the High Court in Kuala Lumpur.
Malaysiakini brings you live reports of the proceedings.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
- Najib in Parliament tomorrow, trial starts at 2.30pm
- 1MDB prevented Audit Dept from photocopying its documents in 2010
- 'Letter to restrict confidential 1MDB documents on Jho Low's orders'
- Judge puts foot down on snickering from public gallery
- Jho Low cautioned ex-1MDB CEO to be super careful
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5.15pm - Thank you for following our live report today.
Najib in Parliament tomorrow, trial starts at 2.30pm
5.04pm - Two matters to be held tomorrow morning necessitate the trial to start at 2.30pm. Pekan MP Najib Abdul Razak needs to attend Dewan Rakyat proceedings, and the defence team is scheduled to be at the Federal Court for an appeal.
Najib's lead defence counsel Muhammad Shafee Abdullah relays this to Kuala Lumpur High Court judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah on the need to begin proceedings at 2.30pm tomorrow instead of the usual 9.30pm.
With confirmation by lead DPP Gopal Sri Ram, Shafee informs the court of the apex court matter which is an appeal by the prosecution against the Court of Appeal giving leave to Najib and Shafee to proceed with their judicial review to challenge former Federal Court judge Sri Ram's appointment as the public prosecutor.
Shafee (photo) also tells the court that his client, as a lawmaker, will be attending Parliament's question time in regard to the recently unveiled Budget 2020.
"My client (Najib) told me that perhaps he can leave (Dewan Rakyat and go to Kuala Lumpur High Court) by 2.30pm," he says.
Sequerah then allows the application to start the trial at 2.30pm tomorrow, and adjourns proceedings for today.
1MDB prevented Audit Dept from photocopying its documents in 2010
4.25pm - A 1MDB officer had prevented the National Audit Department (NAD) officials from photocopying the company's documents in 2010, the court hears.
According to a letter written by NAD to the then CEO of 1MDB, Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi, this happened when the auditors were carrying out an audit exercise and due diligence on the company in October 2010.
Shahrol, who is the ninth prosecution witness, tells the court that he was told by Jho Low to be "super careful" with information leakage from the company.
This includes ensuring that no copies are to be made of 1MDB documents.
Shahrol's answer then leads to defence lawyer Muhammad Shafee Abdullah to put it to the witness that Low had treated 1MDB as he wishes, to which Shahrol disagrees.
Shafee: So Low was treating 1MDB as though 1MDB was his grandfather's company. Documents are secret... Like it is not a company of MOF Inc. Low told you and you followed.
Shahrol: Low was relaying to me instructions from the shareholders.
Shafee: And all these you followed Low's instruction.
Shahrol: We were following shareholders' instruction.
'Letter to restrict confidential 1MDB documents on Jho Low's orders'
3.30pm: Ex-1MDB CEO says he wrote a letter to restrict confidential 1MDB documents based on Jho Low's instructions.
The court hears from Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi that he wrote a letter in July 2010 to the then prime minister and finance minister, Najib Abdul Razak, on the restriction of relaying confidential information on the company to the third party.
The letter stated that all confidential information on 1MDB can only be released to a third party only after approval by its board of advisers and endorsement by Najib.
This happened about a week after another letter by the then Treasury secretary-general Wan Abdul Aziz Wan Abdullah that stated Najib had agreed for due diligence and audit to be carried out on 1MDB by the National Audit Department.
Shahrol testifies that he wrote the letter based on the instruction given by Low (photo), and believes that the instruction to restrict the confidential information had come from Najib.
The witness also agrees that he never checked with Najib whether Low's instruction was truly from him, albeit having realised that it was being obstructive to efforts to conduct due diligence on 1MDB.
Lead defence counsel Muhammad Shafee Abdullah then asks Shahrol whether he did not suspect anything wrong by what Low had instructed him to do.
"The reason was this. 1MDB only received RM4.3 billion, out of the RM5 billion IMTN bonds. This was already played up as an issue by the opposition at the time.
"So I believed Low when he said that restricting the audit serves to protect the political interests of the then prime minister," Shahrol says.
Judge puts foot down on snickering from public gallery
3.19pm: Kuala Lumpur High Court judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah puts his foot down when sounds of snickering from a female are heard coming from the public gallery.
The hushed, jeering-like snickering comes in response to testimony from former 1MDB CEO Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi.
This is when Shahrol was testifying that in 2010, then prime minister Najib Abdul Razak had agreed to an audit but then later allegedly changed his mind.
He also had allegedly through Jho Low told the witness to write a certain letter related to this.
The snickering ceases suddenly when lead DPP Gopal Sri Ram stands up and objects to the disturbance, saying that people in the public gallery cannot act that way during proceedings.
Sequerah: Where is the snickering coming from? Police, be more vigilant (to catch the person snickering).
Jho Low cautioned ex-1MDB CEO to be super careful
3.06pm: Jho Low cautioned ex-1MDB CEO Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi to be super careful so info gathered in any audit would not be used against Najib, the court hears.
Shahrol testifies that Low told him in 2010 to be careful with any information gathered in any planned due diligence of the sovereign wealth fund so it would not be used against then prime minister Najib Abdul Razak.
He says this in reply to a question from lead defence counsel Muhammad Shafee Abdullah during cross-examination this afternoon.
Najib's lead counsel is asking the 9th witness whether there was any tension in 2010 when the National Audit Department was of the view that 1MDB ought to be audited, while the sovereign wealth fund held the opposite view.
"I do not recall any tension. What I recall was that we were told by Jho (Low) that we have to be super careful, less any information gathered during the (due diligence) exercise would be used against Najib," Shahrol says.
2.10pm: Accused Najib Abdul Razak enters the dock as proceedings resume.
The 21st day of former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak’s RM2.28 billion 1MDB trial will start around 2pm this afternoon rather than the usual 9.30am.
On Thursday last week, lead DPP Gopal Sri Ram had informed Kuala Lumpur High Court judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah that he needed to attend to a separate case at the Federal Court in Putrajaya today before he could come to the hearing.
Incidentally, last week’s Thursday proceeding was also a half-day because 9th witness and former 1MDB CEO Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi was not feeling well, leading to early adjournment around midday.
When proceedings resume this afternoon, Najib’s lead defence counsel Muhammad Shafee Abdullah will resume his cross-examination of key prosecution witness Shahrol, who served as 1MDB’s CEO from 2009 to 2013.
Shafee is expected to continue where he left off last week, which was Shahrol’s testimony that 1MDB chief investment officer Vincent Koh was brought into the fund on the recommendation of its business development executive officer Casey Tang, who was an alleged associate of wanted businessperson Low Taek Jho, or Jho Low. - Mkini
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