The Malaysian Insight

FORMER 1MDB chief Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi told the high court in Najib Razak’s corruption trial today that Low Taek Jho and the Prime Minister’s Office led a deal between the state investor and Aabar Investments PJS Ltd (BVI) to develop the Tun Razak Exchange project.

Shahrol said this while under questioning by defence lawyer Wan Aizuddin Wan Mohammad.

The 1MDB CEO was replaced by Mohd Hazem Abdul Rahman, who was recommended by Najib and Low.

Shahrol today spoke about the 1MDB-Aabar joint venture, which was made on the terms that Aabar would provide the capital while 1MDB had the development rights.

It later emerged that Aabar was a shell company registered in the British Virgin Islands and controlled by Low, and not a subsidiary of Abu Dhabi’s International Petroleum Investment Company.

Shahrol told the court he was not privy to the deal and that it was made with the approval of Low on the PMO’s orders.

“I just want to clarify that there was no indication that it was 1MDB’s idea. It was not my idea to propose for the timeline, it is not true.

“The timeline and content were detailed to us via email from the PM’s office,” he said in court. 

Instructions came from Low, whom Shahrol described as a confidant of Najib’s. 

“It was a dog and pony show by PMO… we received instructions via notes and talking points from Jho Low,” he added. 

Shahrol said it had not been necessary for JV partners to sign the conventional memorandum of understanding because of the PMO’s involvement.

Wan Aizuddin: Shouldn’t a proper MoU signing be done before the joint-venture agreement was signed?

Shahrol: It was not necessary. My involvement was as the CEO (of 1MDB) but the details were moved by the PMO (the Prime Minister’s Office) and Goldman Sachs. Azlin gave a timeline and to me it was a government-to-government move.

Shahrol was referring to the late Azlin Alias, Najib’s former principal private secretary and the economics director at the PMO, which oversaw 1MDB.

The court was also presented with the Swiss bank BSI statement of 1MDB Global Investments Ltd, which Shahrol said he did not recall. 

However, he admitted to knowing that some directors had travelled to Lugano, Switzerland to open the account into which US$3 billion of 1MDB funds was deposited. 

Shahrol said he and the 1MDB board were not told about the money and did not give approval to the account signatories to manage the funds. 

1MDB’s standard operating procedure did not require the board’s approval, he added.

Shahrol’s replacement, Hazem, oversaw 1MDB’s dealings with Aabar BVI on the TRX project.

Hazem helped to raised the US$3 billion bonds to finance the project.

Shahrol is the ninth prosecution witness in the trial and has been on the stand since September. Hazem is the next witness.

Najib, 67, is on trial on four counts of power abuse to enrich himself with RM2.3 billion from 1MDB and 21 counts of laundering the same amount. He faces up to 20 years’ jail upon conviction.

Prosecutors accuse him of conspiring with Low to defraud the state investor. The trial continues tomorrow.  – August 17, 2020.