PUTRAJAYA: Former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak informed the High Court that he returned US 620 million of unutilised donation funds to the source account after obtaining approval from Bank Negara Malaysia.
Najib stated during his oral remarks preceding the defence submission that the funds were used for political and social welfare purposes and that he did not maintain any offshore accounts.
“Equally shocking is that I actually returned US 620 million to the source account because it had not been utilised,“ he told presiding judge Datuk Collin Lawrence Sequerah.
He revealed that before returning the unused donation, he wrote to the then Bank Negara governor Tan Sri Zeti Akhtar Aziz seeking the central bank’s approval for the transaction.
Najib contended that several individuals linked to 1Malaysia Development Berhad had conducted questionable transactions involving hundreds of millions of US dollars without facing legal consequences.
He specifically mentioned former 1MDB chief executive officers Datuk Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi and Mohd Hazem Abdul Rahman among those who allegedly engaged in misconduct.
Najib also named his former aide Datuk Amhari Effendi Nazaruddin and former 1MDB counsel Jasmine Loo Ai Swan as individuals involved in these transactions.
He claimed these individuals were treated as credible prosecution witnesses while he alone faced criminal charges.
Najib’s lead counsel Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah informed the court that the defence had compiled seven volumes of written arguments for the 1MDB-related case.
The defence will present these submissions over nine days following the closure of their case on May 6 after calling 26 witnesses.
The former prime minister faces four charges of using his position to obtain gratification totalling RM2.3 billion in 1MDB funds between February 2011 and December 2014.
He is charged under Section 23(1) of the MACC Act which carries a maximum penalty of 20 years imprisonment and a fine of either five times the bribe amount or RM10,000.
Najib also faces 21 money laundering charges for offences allegedly committed between March and August 2013 at the same AmIslamic Bank Berhad branch.
The money laundering charges carry maximum penalties of RM5 million in fines and five years imprisonment upon conviction.
Najib has been serving a prison sentence in Kajang Prison since August 2022 following his conviction in the SRC International case.
His royal pardon petition in September 2022 resulted in his imprisonment term being reduced from 12 years to six years.
The fine in the SRC case was also reduced from RM210 million to RM50 million following the pardon process.
The hearing continues tomorrow. – Bernama
