A SENIOR cop will be put on the spot tomorrow to explain why police did not allow Rosmah Mansor to identify 44 pieces of jewellery in a legal tussle between her and a Lebanese jeweller.

The Kuala Lumpur High Court today ordered Bukit Aman’s special investigation head Superintendent Foo Wei Min to explain why police had failed to comply with a court order that Rosmah be allowed to identify the 44 pieces from the hundreds which were seized by police in raids after the 14th general election.

Foo was ordered to turn up in court tomorrow before judicial commissioner Wong Chee Lin after which the court will decide if it will allow Rosmah’s application to stay the trial.

Rosmah was sued by the Lebanese jeweller Salmeh Halimeh, who runs Global Royalty Trading SAL, for non-payment of the jewellery worth US$14.79 million (RM60.21 million).

Rosmah’s lawyer N. Rajivan told reporters after a hearing presided over by Judicial Commissioner Wong Chee Lin today that police are still confirming whether they have the 44 items.

“In light of that, the trial cannot proceed because our client’s position is that they’ve all been seized.

“So until the police comes back and gives us an answer as to whether the 44 pieces are with them, this trial cannot proceed.

“We have asked for the application to be stayed and the entire suit to be stayed until May 2019 but today what Yang Arif has done is that she has issued an order to ask Superintendent Foo Wei Min to be present tomorrow at 9 am to ask why the order given on February 14 has not been complied with.”

The jewellery was believed to have been seized by police shortly after the 14th general election last May.

Rajivan said the court will now hear applications by Rosmah as well as the government, to stay proceedings pending confirmation from police on the whereabouts of the jewellery.

Wong had previously ordered the parties to be prepared for trial if an application for a stay is not granted. The trial is set to proceed on March 4 and 5.

Global Royalty’s counsel David Gurupatham argued for the trial to proceed, saying it was a straightforward civil case.

“But the court was concerned about the order, the two orders granted for the confirmation of the seizure or otherwise of these 44 pieces,” he told reporters today.

On February 12, the court was told that police are still unable to determine whether they have in their possession the 44 pieces of jewellery, which Rosmah had yet to pay for.

Dubai-based jeweller Adi Hasan AlFardan is also seeking to recover jewellery worth more than US$5 million (RM20.75 million), which were allegedly delivered to Rosmah without any payment made. He has yet to file a suit. – February 25, 2019.