PAST criminal allegations in India and Indonesia against newly appointed Digital Nasional Bhd (DNB) chief executive officer Ralph Marshall have no merit, his lawyer Judith Seddon said in a statement today.

This was apparent from Interpol rejecting a Red Notice Application from both countries, she said in a letter dated today issued by her firm, the London-based Ropes & Gray. 

A Red Notice allows Interpol to locate and provisionally arrest a person pending extradition, surrender, or similar legal action.

Marshall and Maxis Communications Bhd owner Ananda Krishan had charges filed against them in India over Maxis’ acquisition in 2006 of India’s Aircel from Siva Ventures Limited.

Siva Ventures’ owner, Sivasankaran, brought arbitration proceedings against Maxis in Singapore in 2009, claiming it had breached contractual obligations and that he had been coerced into selling Aircel Ltd. The case was however dismissed by the tribunal.

Despite the dismissal, Seddon said India’s Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) proceeded to file charges against Marshal, Maxis and its owner Ananda Krishna. This too was discharged.

“In a comprehensive judgment dated February 2, 2017, the judge discharged all the accused holding the allegations of criminal misconduct and bribery were wholly without merit.

“Even after dismissal of the charges by the court in 2017, CBI applied to Interpol for a Red Notice against Mr Marshall. In December 2017, Interpol rejected that application,” said Seddon, who added that she has represented Marshall since 2010.

Similarly with criminal allegations in Indonesia, Interpol in December 2017 had issued a certificate stating that Marshall was “not subject to any Interpol Red Notice or diffusion and is not known in Interpol’s databases”.

Interpol rejected the Red Notice application made by Indonesia’s Lippo Group, over allegations that Marshall had been involved in improper accounting treatment in a proposed joint venture between Astro All Asia Networks and Lippo.

Marshall was at the time deputy chairman and group chief executive officer of Astro.

Numerous criminal allegations are brought, but Seddon pointed out that Indonesian police had terminated them, most recently in 2016.

So were civil proceedings brought by Lippo, which Indonesia’s Supreme Court dismissed on June 3, 2020.

“In short, this means that in respect of the Indonesian allegations, no civil or criminal proceedings or investigations remain outstanding,” the lawyer said.

Marshall’s appointment to Digital Nasional, which will oversee Malaysia’s 5G rollout, has cast a spotlight on the previous criminal allegations brought against him. 

Digital Nasional will act as a wholesale neutral party and the government has said that telcos will not need to invest heavily in 5G networks. – March 10, 2021.