KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 24 ― Datuk Seri Najib Razak has applied to the court to be allowed to inspect or be given documents which Swiss whistleblower Xavier Andre Justo handed over to the authorities as part of the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) investigations.
The application or motion was made through the former prime minister's lawyers in his ongoing corruption trial in relation to more than RM2 billion of 1MDB funds.
In the application, Najib sought for a court order to compel the prosecution or any other entity that have the “custody, care and control” of documents that Justo surrendered to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) in relation to 1MDB's joint venture with PetroSaudi International Ltd and to “make available” these documents, either in its physical form or as retrieved from a digital storage device, for his inspection.
Alternatively, Najib asked the court to compel the prosecution or any other entity having the custody and control of these documents to produce them to him.
Malay Mail understands the application was filed on October 16, but was only served by Najib's lawyers to the prosecution this morning.
The application was raised earlier this morning, just before Najib's 1MDB trial hearing resumed.
Lead prosecutor Datuk Seri Gopal Sri Ram said he would seek for instructions from the MACC.
“Could I ask for case management, I have never heard of this and it's not part of my brief from MACC, so I have to ask the investigators and commissioners of MACC to take instructions,” he said.
High Court judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah then fixed October 31 for case management of the application.
Today is Day 25 of Najib's 1MDB trial, where ninth prosecution witness Datuk Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi is being cross-examined over matters that occurred during his tenure as 1MDB CEO ― including a joint venture between 1MDB and its purported partner PetroSaudi International Limited that eventually resulted in a zero-return for 1MDB's US$1 billion investment.
Najib's ongoing 1MDB trial involves 25 criminal charges ― four counts of abusing his position for his own financial benefit totalling almost RM2.3 billion allegedly originating from 1MDB and the resulting 21 counts of money-laundering.
