KUALA LUMPUR: Just a day earlier than the Court of Appeal is scheduled to determine subsequent week on the destiny of his attraction towards a conviction for misappropriating RM42mil of SRC International Sdn Bhd funds, Datuk Seri Najib Razak has been granted an opportunity to present new evidence that may assist him.
His application for new evidence to be adduced in his attraction over his 12-year jail sentence and a high-quality of RM210mil shall be heard on Tuesday, a day earlier than the Court of Appeal delivers its verdict on Wednesday.
The matter was additionally confirmed by Najib’s lead counsel Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah and deputy public prosecutor Datuk V. Sithambaran when contacted by Bernama yesterday.
Filed on Dec 1, Najib is making use of for the Appeals Court to permit and to direct for viva voce evidence to be taken from Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief commissioner Datuk Seri Azam Baki, MACC investigating officer Rosli Hussein, who was the 57th prosecution witness within the SRC case, in addition to evidence of every other witness in relation to the case.
In an affidavit filed in assist of his application, Najib, 68, mentioned he had made the application directly as quickly as he was made conscious of and was ready to accumulate all the required info and paperwork.
Najib claimed that such info was not accessible or couldn’t be obtained throughout his SRC trial on the High Court and when the Court of Appeal beforehand heard the attraction, therefore he’s asking the Court of Appeal to determine on this application earlier than delivering its resolution.
Najib acknowledged that he made the application following the MACC’s press launch dated Nov 19 this yr, on the restoration of fund belongings of 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) inter alia from Singapore, whereby the Singapore authorities had repatriated a sum of US$15.4mil (RM65.1mil) to Malaysia relating to an account of Cutting-Edge Industries Ltd (CEIL) owned by Datuk Dr Tawfiq Ayman, the husband of former Bank Negara Malaysia governor Tan Sri Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz.
He added that in October and December 2020, articles had been revealed by an internet information portal which reported that Zeti and her household had obtained hundreds of thousands of {dollars} from fugitive businessman Low Taek Jho, or Jho Low, together with funds linked to 1MDB.
Najib claimed that on Jan 20, 2021, his solicitors had written to the Monetary Authority of Singapore and Singapore Commercial Affairs Department to acquire verification and documentation relating to the accounts of CEIL, Iron Rhapsody Ltd, Jho Low in addition to Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil (former chief govt officer of SRC) and the authorized proceedings taken in direction of seizure of properties belonging to them
Najib mentioned on March 24 this yr, his solicitors obtained an e mail from an officer of the Commercial Affairs Department declining his solicitor’s requests and he was additionally unable to acquire the evidence that has now been credibly verified by way of the MACC’s press assertion dated Nov 19 this yr.
