“Funds in Najib’s account came from Saudi Arabia in 1MDB case,” court told

1MALAYSIA Development Bhd (1MDB) investigating officer Foo Wei Min revealed in the High Court today that certain transactions in former premier Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s AmBank accounts recorded as occurring in 2011 involved funds originating from Saudi Arabia.

Foo, who is from Bukit Aman’s commercial crime investigation department, testified that Najib had informed authorities that he was anticipating donations from Saudi Arabia. Cross-examined by Najib’s lawyer Tan Sri Shafee Abdullah, Foo confirmed that some transactions were linked to “Prince Faisal Turki Al Saud” and the “Riyadh Finance Ministry”.

However, he stated that an investigating officer from the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Nur Aida Arifin provided copies of bank statements from several foreign countries to the police, but not from Saudi Arabia.

Moreover, Shafee questioned the source of the money transferred by “Prince Faisal Turki Al Saud” and the “Riyadh Finance Ministry” to Najib’s account. Foo stated that the funds originated from 1MDB, the troubled state investment fund at the center of the scandal.

Despite not having Saudi bank statements, Foo maintained that his investigation primarily focused on the receipt, use and transfer of allegedly ill-gotten funds in Najib’s accounts.

Furthermore, Najib faces 25 charges of abuse of power and money laundering with alleged 1MDB funds totalling RM2.28 bil deposited into his AmBank accounts between February 2011 and December 2014.

The hearing before Justice Collin Lawrence Sequerah continues tomorrow. – Nov 8, 2023

 

Main photo credit: Bernama

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