Bank officer: US$61m, £9.4 million went into Najib’s accounts

 

1MDB TRIAL | Najib Abdul Razak’s AmBank account ending with 694 received US$61 million on March 23, 2013, testified the commercial bank’s Swift (real-time electronic transfer of funds and securities) unit manager.

Wedani Senen told the Kuala Lumpur High Court this afternoon that the former prime minister’s other account ending with 880 received over £9.4 million between June 23 and Dec 18, 2014.

The 29th prosecution was testifying during the RM2.28 billion 1MDB corruption trial against former prime minister and finance minister Najib Abdul Razak.

On Thursday last week, Wedani gave oral evidence that the 694 account designated AmPrivate Banking-MR received around US$670 million between 2011 and 2013. 

Her testimony today is in relation to an alleged additional seven transactions divided between Najib’s 694 and 880 accounts between 2013 and 2014.

During examination-in-chief by deputy public prosecutor Najwa Bistamam, Wedani said that the US$61 million was transferred from Tanore Finance Corporation in a single transaction.

The witness testified that the £9.4 million was transferred via six transactions from Blackrock Commodities (Global) Limited and Vista Equity International Partners.

She testified that in regards to the pound sterling transactions, the largest single transaction amount was £5.75 million and the smallest single transaction amount was £2216.01.

Wedani also told the court that more than US$620 million was transferred from the 694 account to Tanore on Aug 26, 2013.

According to the prosecution previously, British Virgin Islands-based (BVI) Tanore and Blackrock were two entities set up by fugitive businessperson Low Taek Jho (Jho Low) and his alleged associates to facilitate the embezzlement of funds from Malaysian sovereign wealth fund 1MDB.

The hearing before trial judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah will continue tomorrow.

Defence: Najib unaware, Jho Low mastermind

Najib is on trial for four counts of abuse of power and 21 counts of money laundering involving RM2.28 billion of 1MDB’s funds.

The Pekan MP was alleged to have committed the four counts of corruption at AmIslamic Bank Berhad’s Jalan Raja Chulan branch in Bukit Ceylon, Kuala Lumpur, between Feb 24, 2011, and Dec 19, 2014.

In regard to the 21 money laundering charges, Najib is purported to have committed the offences at the same bank between March 22, 2013, and Aug 30, 2013.

The prosecution contended that the wrongdoing at 1MDB was carried out by Low and his alleged associates with the blessing of Najib.

The accused’s defence team, however, claimed he had no knowledge of the crime perpetrated at 1MDB and that the embezzlement was solely masterminded by Low, his alleged associates, and other members of the fund’s management.

Najib previously claimed that he received US$681 million in donation from the Saudi royal family. However, he claimed to have returned US$620 million of the alleged donation.

1MDB is fully owned by the Minister of Finance Incorporated (MoF Inc).

Besides being former prime minister and finance minister, the accused was also chairperson of 1MDB’s board of advisers. - Mkini