Court sets May 10 for Najib’s appeal hearing to get bank documents relating to 1MDB case

PUTRAJAYA, March 17 ― Datuk Seri Najib Razak's appeal hearing in the Court of Appeal to obtain documents which he claimed were relevant to his defence in his trial involving misappropriation of RM2.3 billion funds from 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) funds has been rescheduled to May 10.

The date was fixed following case management held today before the Court of Appeal deputy registrar Nurul Azrina Mohamed Yusof.

Deputy public prosecutor Mohamad Mustaffa P. Kunyalam who appeared for the prosecution, and Nur Syahirah Hanapiah, who is representing the former prime minister were present.

“The Court fixed hearing on May 10. Submissions already filed by parties involved,” said Mohamad Mustaffa to the media.

On July 12 last year, High Court judge Datuk Collin Lawrence Sequerah dismissed Najib's applications to obtain documents involving the United States investment bank Goldman Sachs, former Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) governor Tan Sri Zeti Akhtar Aziz's family and fugitive businessman Low Taek Jho.

On March 24, last year Najib filed a court order to compel the prosecution to provide several banking statements from companies, including Aktis Capital Singapore Pte Ltd, Country Group Securities Public Company Ltd, ACME Time Ltd (BVI), Butamba Investments Ltd, and Central Holdings Ltd, believed to be related to Jho Low and Zeti’s family in his 1MDB case.

The Pekan Member of Parliament filed his second application on April 7, last year seeking to obtain the confidential settlement agreement between the government and the Goldman Sachs Group entered in 2020 and transcripts or the forensic report on the phones of former Goldman Sachs partner in Asia, Tim Leissner.

Najib is on trial on four charges of using his position to obtain bribes totalling RM2.3 billion from 1MDB funds and 21 charges of money laundering involving the same amount.

The trial is ongoing in the High Court before Justice Sequerah. ― Bernama