KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 8 — Despite consistently accusing fugitive financier Low Taek Jho of manipulating his bank accounts, Datuk Seri Najib Razak accepted in court today that this was to his benefit.
Under cross-examination by ad hoc prosecutor Datuk V. Sithambaram, Najib conceded that he did not lose money as was typical when a person’s bank accounts are compromised.
Instead, Najib’s accounts grew by several billion ringgit as a result of the alleged manipulation by Low or Jho Low.
Testifying in his own defence witness at his SRC International Sdn Bhd corruption trial, Najib also acknowledged spending this money in the belief that it had been donated by Saudi royalty.
Sithambaram: You agree with me, that as a result of this alleged manipulation of your accounts by Jho Low, you did not lose any money from your bank account?
Najib: No, I didn’t.
Sithambaram: You did not lose any money but in fact benefited from the monies deposited into your account, you agree with me?
Najib: Yes.
Sithambaram: And these monies that were paid into your account, you spent as you deemed fit or as you pleased?
Najib: I was going on a basis of the donation letters which I received.
Sithambaram: But you must be the first victim of any manipulation to gain billions into your account?
Najib: I don’t know. I didn’t ask for it, but you could put it that way.
Sithambaram: That’s the only way to put it Datuk Seri, you are a victim, monies went into your account and you spent it, usually victims of any manipulation of their account will lose money, you know that?
Najib: Yes, usually.
Later in the cross-examination, it was also revealed that despite former SRC International chief executive Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil being the authorised manager of his account, Najib knew that some transactions related to the Saudi donations would be handled by Low.
He told the court he was kept abreast of his account by his former private secretary, the late Datuk Azlin Alias, with information he believed was obtained from Nik Faisal.
“It was basically Datuk Azlin. Occasionally by Nik Faisal,” Najib answered Sithambaram when asked who would update him over his account status.
Sithambaram: How about Jho Low?
Najib: Only when it concerned the remittance (of donations).
The Pekan MP also admitted that he did not take the initiative to find out the source of the funds that made its way into his personal bank accounts, saying he trusted the monies had come from legitimate sources after receiving supporting letters from Low.
“I was basing it on two things, first on the letters, and secondly I decided that Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) must be informed and the purpose of doing that is for BNM to check if the source is legitimate, that was my intention,” said Najib.
Najib is testifying after he was called to enter his defence to answer seven charges related to SRC International by High Court Judge Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali.
Three are for criminal breach of trust over a total RM42 million of SRC International funds while entrusted with its control as the prime minister and finance minister then, three more are for laundering the RM42 million, and the last is for abusing the same positions for self-gratification of the same sum.
