NAJIB Razak’s SRC International trial enters its 37th day today, with witness Wedani Senen, a remittance department manager at the AmBank head office in Kuala Lumpur, returning to the stand.

Also returning to be cross-examined is Bank Negara analyst Shuzairizman Shuib, who led a digital forensics team to a raid on AmBank’s Raja Chulan branch on July 6, 2015.

They are expected to be questioned by the defence on transactions in 2014 related to SRC International and Najib, which presiding judge Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali has allowed.

The 2014 transactions are part of the coming 1Malaysia Development Bhd case, where the former prime minister faces an additional 25 criminal charges. 

The transactions amount to some RM50 million and involve Blackrock Commodities Global Ltd and Visa Equity International Pte Ltd. Both firms were linked to fugitive financier Low Taek Jho.  

Those transactions were filed in court under “Appendix C”, which includes the stated purpose of the credit transactions provided to AmBank’s relationship managers.

The court heard last week that the 2015 raid recovered data from three relationship managers – Joanna Yu, Krystle Yap and Daniel Lee.

The trio were tasked with liaising with holders of bank accounts linked to Najib and 1MDB, as well as its former subsidiary, SRC International.  

Prosecutors have told the court that Yu will testify.

Shuzairizman will be cross-examined on a 500-page chat transcript from confiscated devices, including Yu’s phone.

The defence has said it is interested in communications between Yu and Low, which proves its case that Najib was not fully aware of transactions carried in his name and that he was manipulated.

Wedani, who last appeared in court in May, previously testified that RM4 billion in loans were transferred into two SRC International company current accounts.

She confirmed RM2 billion was credited into current account No. 211-202-200973-6 via four transfers of RM500 million each on August 29, 2011, about seven months after the account was opened on January 28, 2011.

She also said a single transfer of RM2 billion was credited into current account No. 211-202-20165-0 on March 28, 2012, about four months after the account was opened on November 10, 2011.

The previous government said SRC International was formed to identify and invest in natural resources and mineral ventures, including acquisition of stocks or company securities.  

Of the RM4 billion funnelled into SRC International in 2011 and 2012, RM42 million eventually made its way into Najib’s bank accounts in 2014 and 2015.

Najib faces three counts of criminal breach of trust, three counts of money-laundering and one count of abuse of power over those funds.  

He is represented by a dozen lawyers led by Muhammad Shafee Abdullah.

Attorney-General Tommy Thomas leads the prosecution.

The Malaysian Insight brings you today’s proceedings live.

5.28pm: Nazlan says that because the defence has given advance notice and taking into consideration the importance of the vote in Parliament, he allows the trial to end early tomorrow so Najib can attend it. 

The judge adds that if the trial cannot be wrapped up by August 15, it will be extended to the next day.

The court adjourns for today.

5.17pm: Shafee asks Nazlan to grant Najib leave to attend Parliament to vote on an amendment to change the voting age from 21 to 18 years old at 11am tomorrow.

Shafee says his client has to attend Parliament as it is a historic vote.

Sithambaram says his team does not want to go ahead with the trial if Najib is not present as it runs the risk of  nullity.

5.13pm: They are asked to submit their application for the documents on Thursday.

5.07pm: Shafee says his client needs the documents to declare his assets.

Sithambaram says he has heard of no such thing.

Shafee retorts, saying the A-G was the one who asked for a declaration of assets, and that his client needs the documents to do so.

Nazlan says Shafee’s team should submit a proper formal application to hear the legal merits behind the need for the documents.

4.51pm: Shafee makes an application to get documents pertaining to Najib’s accounts for the defence. Sithambaram says he is following A-G’s instructions not to give out any documents.

Shafee argues that his client not being granted access to the documents is unlawful.

4.49pm: The witness is let go from the stand.

4.25pm: Harvinderjit begins cross-examining the witness on whether the KWAP loan to SRC International was shariah compliant.

4.02pm: He is verifying with the DPP when and where these documents were signed, as well as the signatories of the documents.

3.10pm: He says the firm produced agreements, such as facility agreements, and asset sale and purchase agreements, for the KWAP loans to SRC International.

2.46pm: The trial resumes after the break with its 48th witness, Suhaimi Ismail, called to the stand. Suhaimi is Bandar Malaysia Sdn Bhd’s Legal Division director.

He says at the time in question, he was working at the law firm Hisham Sobri & Kadir, which handled documentation for KWAP’s loan to SRC International.

He reads to the court the offer letter from KWAP granting the first RM2 billion loan.

12.50pm: The witness is let go of after his statements are verified.

Court adjourns for lunch.

12.38pm: Cross-examination begins now.

RM127,017 was also paid off for the Mastercard.

Harvinderjit suggests that according to the statements in April 2015, Nik Faisal had made a payment for both the accounts.

Nik Faisal used his credit card to make payments for both the accounts.

12.37pm: On February 5, 2015, RM466,330 was paid to the Visa card from the account ending in “880”.

12.35pm: There was also a payment of RM127,017 at Shangri-la Bangkok in January 2015.

12.32pm: For the Mastercard, €100,000 was charged at the same merchant, De Grisogono.

Another €100,000 was charged and the third transaction was €50,000 in the same outlet.

The fourth transaction was for €100,000 at the same merchant. The fifth transaction was for €100,000 at the same merchant.

The sixth transaction was for €100,000. The seventh transaction on the same day was for the sum of €100,000 at the same merchant. The last transaction was for €10,000 at the same outlet.

On August 13, there was a payment of RM2.83 million on the Mastercard.

On December 22, 2014, US$130,627 (RM535,000) was charged to Chanel in Honolulu, Hawaii.

12.24pm: There are two credit cards under Najib’s account – a Visa platinum and a Mastercard platinum, said Yeoh.

The spending limit on both cards is RM3 million.

There were two transactions in the Visa card and eight in the Mastercard.

For Visa, one of the transactions was in Italy for €100,000 (RM465,000) on August 8, 2014, at De Grisogono.

Another transaction at the same shop on the same day came to €3,500.

12.17pm: The next witness, Yeoh Eng Leong, takes the stand. The senior vice-president of AmBank in charge of credit card operations.

He is also in charge of fraud management and has access to credit card statements.

Yeoh said the MACC (Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission) asked him to provide credit card statements from Najib’s AmBank account.

The statements he gave to MACC were from 2011 to 2015.

11.47am: Wedani said interbank transfers have shorter time periods compared with transfers from outside banks.

11.32am: They’re going through other transactions credited into Najib’s ‘906’ account.

11.16am: Wedani Senen, the 24th witness, takes the stand again.

She is AmBank’s remittance centre’s Rentas (or real-time electronic transfer of funds and securities) unit manager.

She is verifying a transaction of RM5 million from Putra Perdana Construction Bhd in Alliance Bank to an AmPrivate banking account. The last three digits of the account ends in “906” and is under Najib’s name.

11.12am: Shuzairizman is let go from the witness stand and a break is called.

10.38am: Harvinderjit asks the witness about WhatsApp and Telegram conversations between Yu and Yap.

Shuzairizman said last week their phones did not have those apps. Harvinderjit implies that their phones had those apps.

Shuzairizman replies: “most likely”.

10.17am: Harvinderjit now closes in on communications between Crystal Yap and another AmBank relationship manager Daniel Lee.

The defence highlights WhatsApp messages between Yap and Lee on December 9, 2014. Shuzairizman verifies the messages.

10.08am: Sithambaram calls the cross-examination a fishing expedition as the defence is not specifying what it wants.

10.05am: Harvinderjit Singh cross-examines the witness, calling into doubt whether he followed standard operating procedures as there were devices that were analysed but not put in his report.

He also called into question the completeness of a conversation account relationship manager Joanna Yu had with an unknown BlackBerry PIN number.

Shuzairizman argued that the phone conversations are what mattered in his report and not texts.

V. Sithambaram interjects, saying the witness produced the phone conversations.

Harvinderjit said more than 20 pages are missing and he is entitled to ask about them. Sithambaram said Yu will be taking the stand so the defence should be patient and not ask this witness.

Nazlan allows for cross-examination to resume.

9.34am: The trial resumes with prosecution witness 46, BNM investigating officer Shuzairizman Shuib taking the stand to be cross-examined.– July 15, 2019.