The Malaysian Insight

FUGITIVE financier Low Taek Jho was the sole link between Najib Razak and former 1Malaysia Development Bhd CEO Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi, the Kuala Lumpur High Court heard today.

During cross-examination in former prime minister Najib’s 1MDB trial, Shahrol testified that Low, better known as Jho Low, had no official position at the sovereign wealth fund.

The 49-year-old witness said Low held a non-formal post.

“He was the sole link between 1MDB, myself and the sole shareholder, Najib,” he told lead defence counsel Muhammad Shafee Abdullah.

Minister of Finance Inc, led by Najib, took over ownership of the Terengganu Investment Authority (TIA) on July 31, 2009 and changed its name to 1MDB.

While Low worked pro bono as special adviser at TIA, he did not hold a similar, official position at 1MDB, said Shahrol.

Yesterday, he said he had never seen Low’s signature on documents related to 1MDB.

Najib, 66, faces four charges of using his position to obtain bribes totalling RM2.3 billion from 1MDB and 21 charges of laundering the same amount.

Prosecutors have accused him of conspiring with the Penang-born Low to defraud the state investor.

During today’s cross-examination, Shahrol conceded that the TIA board was not informed of two foreign-based companies that were secondary subscribers of the RM5 billion Islamic medium-term notes (IMTN) in May 2009.

The issuance were for 30-year Islamic federal guaranteed bonds, which pay a coupon rate of 5.75%.

The two companies were Aktis Capital Singapore Pte Ltd and Country Group Securities, both linked to Low.

The court was shown documents revealing that the companies bought bonds at 88% of face value, which were later sold to the Employees Provident Fund, Social Security Organisation and insurance companies.

In October 2009, Shahrol testified that the 1MDB board of directors had summoned AmBank to explain why 1MDB only received RM4.3 billion for its RM5 billion IMTN.

A presentation by AmBank did not reveal the two firms.

He said the only vocal board member who queried about the IMTN disparity was then 1MDB chairman Bakke Salleh.

Shahrol agreed with a suggestion that AmBank executives could have conspired to defraud TIA/1MDB. The witness also agreed that TIA, as well as AmBank’s shareholders, might have suffered losses.

Najib is represented by a dozen lawyers, led by Shafee.

Former Federal Court judge Gopal Sri Ram leads the prosecution before Kuala Lumpur High Court judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah. – October 9, 2019.