Driver: I delivered 'schoolbags stuffed with cash' to Rosmah's house

ROSMAH TRIAL | A chauffeur today told the Kuala Lumpur High Court today that he once delivered "two schoolbags stuffed with cash" to Rosmah Mansor's residence.

Shamsul Rizal Sharbini said he bought the two bags - which he referred to as black "schoolbags" with orange linings - on orders from his boss Saidi Abang Samsudin. The bags cost RM45 each.

"Then I went to the bank with the bags as instructed by Saidi [...] I was instructed to put bundles of cash in RM100 denominations into the bags. This happened at the Maybank (branch) vault.

"I didn't count the money and just placed it in the two backpacks. I brought the backpacks (out of the bank) and placed it in the car boot," he said during examination-in-chief by DPP Mustafa Kunyalam at Rosmah's corruption trial.

When shown photographs depicting Rosmah's residence, Shamsul identified a green sofa where he left the two bags and also Saidi who appeared in the photographs as well.

"I brought two bags with the cash (inside). However, you can only see one in this photo. I could be due to the angle," he said.

The witness said the incident happened before Saidi's company - Jepak Holdings Sdn Bhd - secured a contract to supply solar power for rural schools in Sarawak worth RM1.2 billion.

Rosmah has been charged with soliciting RM187.5 million in bribes and accepting RM1.5 million in bribes in relation to the project.

According to a Maybank Medan Tuanku branch staff who testified yesterday, Saidi had withdrawn, in cash, RM5 million on Dec 20, 2016, and RM1.5 million on Sept 7, 2017.

Although Shamsul could not recall the exact date, his testimony would suggest that he had brought the "schoolbags" to Rosmah's residence in September 2017.

Shamsul also testified that he had in 2016 driven Saidi to a meeting with Rizal Mansor, Rosmah's aide at the time.

Shamsul said he then drove Saidi to a bank with two newly-bought suitcases. He said Saidi and one "Razak" returned about 15 minutes later, each carrying one of the suitcases.

"They placed the suitcases in the boot. Saidi then sat in front and Razak at the back. Suddenly, a man in a dark jacket entered the back seat and sat beside Razak.

"I don't know who he was. He looked like a policeman because he had a firearm. Saidi told me he was afraid that something might happen to him and that he might die," he said.

The quartet then headed for a building next to the Pavilion shopping mall in the capital where he saw Rizal in the lobby.

After Saidi chatted with Rizal, the two suitcases were removed from his vehicle and placed in a black Toyota Vellfire, said the witness.

Saidi and Razak then returned to the car driven by Shamsul without the armed man.

"Inside the car, Saidi joked that he wouldn't even know who would come or who would want to kill him. Razak just laughed," said Shamsul.

Shamsul also testified that he did not know the contents of the suitcases. - Mkini