The criminal trial of former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak involving the alleged misappropriation of funds from SRC International Sdn Bhd enters day 65 today at the High Court in Kuala Lumpur.
Malaysiakini brings you live reports of the proceedings.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
- Prosecutor feeling nauseous, court adjourns
- Missing chocolate is not mine, says Najib
- Najib: I could sense there was enough money in bank accounts
- Prosecution confronts Najib over conflicting answers on his signature
Thank you for following Malaysiakini's live report
12.10pm - Thank you for following our live report today.
Prosecutor feeling nauseous, court adjourns
11.26am - The Kuala Lumpur High Court allows the prosecution's application to adjourn the trial earlier today.
This follows an application by DPP V Sithambaram, who informs judge Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali that he is feeling nauseous at the moment.
Najib Abdul Razak's lead defence counsel Muhammad Shafee Abdullah raises no objection to the early adjournment application.
The whole court erupts into laughter when Nazlan (photo) asks whether Sithambaram is not feeling well due to constant interruption from Najib's co-counsel Harvinderjit Singh.
The judge then sets for the trial to resume on Jan 6, reminding the former prime minister that he is still under oath and not to discuss the case with anyone in the interim.
Proceedings then adjourn for the day.
11.25am - Proceedings resume.
10.46am - The court takes a break.
Missing chocolate is not mine, says Najib
10.40am - During the cross-examination, DPP V Sithambaram suggests that the former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak is thrifty and even noted that there's chocolate missing when police raided his house (photo).
Sithambaram: Datuk Seri, you are a careful man with money or government fund.
Najib: I don't pay too much attention.
Sithambaram: I don't mean disrespect but I feel ‘blur’ (confused). I still recall in the paper (newspaper), when the police carried out some sort of raids in your house, you, in fact, complained that there's chocolate missing.
Najib: My daughter complained.
Sithambaram: So you have issued a press release... (but) it's not your chocolate then?
Najib: Not mine.
Sithambaram: I find it difficult that the (former) prime minister and the finance minister is quite clueless on his financial account?
Najib: You can ask my private secretary, who is managing my personal account.
Najib: I could sense there was enough money in bank accounts
10.36am - Former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak claims that he sensed there was enough money in his AmBank accounts before issuing checks worth millions of ringgit.
The former finance minister says this during cross-examination by DPP V Sithambaram.
Sithambaram: When at the Prime Minister’s Office, you check with (Najib's former chief private secretary) Azlin Alias, at your house, with whom do you check?
Najib: I (could) sense there was enough money in the bank.
Najib reiterates that he has a sense of enough money in the bank accounts ending with the numbers 880, 898 and 906, and that he never knew the exact balance in the accounts unless informed by Azlin.
Prosecution confronts Najib over conflicting answers on his signature
10.08am - DPP V Sithambaram (below) and former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak spar over the latter's allegedly different responses to whether he signed the Minister of Finance Inc (MKD) minutes on allowing an amendment to 1MDB's memorandum and articles of association (M&A).
The DPP is confronting the accused over his apparent conflicting answers in his written Witness Statement and that given while under cross-examination by Attorney-General Tommy Thomas.
In Najib's written statement, he said that he could not be sure whether he signed the amendment into 1MDB's M&A due to the strangeness of the corporate documents.
However, during cross-examination by Thomas, Najib answered that the signature was his.
The amendment is to insert Article 117, which invests great power on then-premier Najib in relation to 1MDB's board decision-making.
Sithambaram: After cross-examination by the AG (Thomas) on P510 (exhibit on MKD minutes on passing of Article 117), you confirmed that it was your signature.
Najib: Yes, but that is subject to seeing the original document.
Sithambaram: You did not qualify your answer back then (during questioning by Thomas).
9.50am - Najib Abdul Razak enters the witness stand as proceedings begin.
The ex-prime minister will resume being cross-examined by DPP V Sithambaram.
9.38am - The Kuala Lumpur High Court allows proceedings to end around lunchtime today.
This follows a related application from DPP V Sithambaram, who informs the court that he has a fever since last night and is not feeling well enough to conduct cross-examination for the whole day.
Najib Abdul Razak's lead defence counsel Muhammad Shafee Abdullah raises no objection to the matter.
9.37am - Former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak enters the Kuala Lumpur High Court and takes a seat at the front row of the public gallery.
Also seen in court waiting for proceedings to begin is DPP V Sithambaram, who is expected to resume cross-examination of the accused.
The prosecution's cross-examination of Najib Abdul Razak enters the fourth day in the former prime minister's RM42 million SRC International trial today.
DPP V Sithambaram will resume his questioning of Najib, who is also former finance minister, in the 65th day of trial before Kuala Lumpur High Court judge Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali at 9.30am this morning.
In yesterday's cross-examination, Sithambaram's grilling of the former advisor emeritus of SRC International triggered several heated exchanges especially when the questioning touched on whether Najib was personally responsible for the wrongdoings linked to his bank accounts.
Najib's witness statement recorded by MACC also revealed that he did not dispute the authenticity of his signatures on key documents such as Finance Ministry minutes on 1MDB and the sovereign wealth fund's former subsidiary, SRC International.
This is despite that the accused, during the current trial, expressing doubt over the veracity of his purported signatures on the crucial documents relied on by the prosecution in the case against him.
Incidentally, Najib's related application for an Australian handwriting expert to be allowed to examine these documents to ascertain the veracity of the signatures is the subject matter of case management before the Kuala Lumpur High Court Registry at 9am this morning. - Mkini
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