AMHARI Efendi Nazaruddin is expected to be done reading out his 77-page witness statement in his former boss’ 1MDB trial today, after which he will be cross-examined by the defence. 

Yesterday Najib Razak’s former special officer testified that Low Taek Jho was a part of Najib’s inner circle years before the latter became prime minister in 2009. 

The witness said he first met Low in 2007 in Penang. Low, then in his 20s, was already regarded as Najib’s “unofficial adviser” in investment matters and later, 1MDB. 

Amhari spoke of a young Low who exuded charisma and “extraordinary powers” when it came to dealings with Najib. Low was educated overseas with Najib’s stepson Riza Aziz and appeared be close with Najib’s wife Rosmah Mansor, the witness said. 

Amhari said he introduced Low to Najib’s principal private secretary Azlin Alias. Later, Amhari said he was briefed by Low on the formation of Terengganu Investment Authority (TIA), which would be modelled after Mubadala Investment Capital, a sovereign wealth fund operated by United Arab Emirates. 

Najib later signed documents changing ownership of TIA from the state government to finance ministry, which he headed, in September 2009. TIA was also renamed 1MDB.

Later, Amhari, Azlin and Low would hold regular monthly meetings to discuss 1MDB matters. Ahmari said only Low and Najib have the full picture of their dealings. 

“Low is a ‘master manipulator’ and I can say that I was used as a pawn in his schemes,” Amhari testified.  

Amhari says by early 2015, media reports linking Riza’s film company, Red Granite Pictures to 1MDB funds began to emerge.

In January or February 2015, Azlin was increasingly under stress, and on one occasion, slammed documents on the table, shouting “Duit 1MDB lah bro!” (It’s 1MDB money, bro!). Amhari said the outburst was out of character for Azlin.

Low later prepared “talking points” to head off a criminal probe by authorities, including five support letters from various entities to proclaim the legitimacy of 1MDB’s US$2.5 billion (RM10.5 billion) joint venture with private oil company PetroSaudi International.

One document included a reference letter, allegedly from a Saudi commercial banking authority, addressed to PetroSaudi CEO Tarek Essam Ahmad Obaid.

Najib faces four counts of abusing his position to gain for himself RM2.3 billion and a further 21 counts of money laundering related to the same amount.

The 66-year-old is represented by a dozen lawyers led by Muhammad Shafee Abdullah.

Gopal Sri Ram, a former Federal Court judge, leads the prosecution while Kuala Lumpur High Court judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah presides over the trial. 

The Malaysian Insight brings you today’s proceedings live:

3.13pm: Judge agrees. Court is adjourned for the day.

3.11pm: Sri Ram ends his examination.

Shafee asks if he can begin his cross examination tomorrow as he needs to confer with his client over the witness statement.

3.10pm: Amhari says every time he received instructions from Najib, there was an immediate follow-up by Low either via email or phone call.

3.08pm: Sri Ram: How long did you interact with Jho Low in terms of years?

Amhari: Physically eight years, in total 11 years.

Sri Ram: Did you know the man well?

Amhari: I would say so.

3.07pm: They are going through the documents.

3.04pm: Sri Ram: You said in your statement that Jho Low wanted to show that PetroSaudi had connections with Saudi government and royal families. What made you to conclude that this was his intentions?

Amhari: Low gave the explanations as such. And it was on the letters and copies of documents he had shown us.

3.01pm: Sri Ram asks him about Paul Stadlen, who was Najib’s PR person.

Amhari says he doesn’t know much about Stadlen.

He says Stadlen was a regular visitor at the PMO.

Amhari: His function was to look at all international communications relating to Najib. He reported to Najib.

2.59pm: Sri Ram: You said Jho Low was in the inner circle. What led you to come to that view?

Amhari: I came to that view because my meeting with Low was about him speaking about Najib’s family and was beyond work. For example, he said he met Rosmah (Mansor) at the house and was planning the family’s travel.

Sri Ram asks about his statement where Amhari said Najib’s people worked in silos.

Sri Ram: Whose idea was it?

Amhari: It was understood. The chief of staff emphasised this. Najib also appreciated this form of working style.

2.57pm: Sri Ram: How was he to the accused?

Amhari: He was loyal and followed orders

Sri Ram: In your witness statement, you suggested that it was illogical that Azlin had asked Najib to open the account. Why would you say that?

Amhari: It was not his role to advise and initiate this.

Sri Ram: In paragraph nine of your statement, your role in the PM’s office, what was your function as a media person?

Amhari: I was managing, administering Najib’s social media content on Facebook, Twitter etc. I interacted with Najib as much as possible and as frequently as possible.

Sri Ram: Why did you have to do that?

Amhari: Social media is dynamic and quick. And most importantly, we had to project Najib’s image. We had to emulate him, speak and write like him so the people know it was him on social media.

2.54pm: Sri Ram continues the examination.

Amhari is asked to describe Azlin.

He says in his seven years working with Azlin, he was patient, humble, down to earth and a person that followed orders. He was very smart and clean.

2.52pm: This concludes Amhari’s witness statement. He is now required to sign each copy of his witness statement that had been given to the defence and the court.

2.50pm: Amhari says the RM2 million cheque that Najib wrote out to Orb Solutions, was given to him by hand.

He says he had given the cheque to Orb Solutions.

2.47pm: Amhari is now talking about his role at Orb Solutions, a company was formed to promote the 1Malaysia initiative.

He was one of the company directors, and a liaison between the company and Najib.

He says he had a non-executive role at Orb Solutions, adding that his role was to ensure the company has funds to carry out its tasks.

2.43pm: Amhari says there was another document that states Najib was to go to China in November 2016 to finalise the “Full EPCC Agreement” between China Communications Construction Company (CCCC) with ECRL Sdn Bhd.

He says it is his opinion that it was a bailout over the losses 1MDB and SRC International Sdn Bhd had incurred.

2.37pm: He says former 1MDB executive director of finance Terence Geh was elected to be the secretariat of the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL), Multi-Product Pipeline (MPP) and Trans-Sabah Gas Pipeline (TGSP) projects.

Amhari says Low had prepared the documents for these three projects for Najib to bring to the economic council for approval.

2.33pm: During the break, the court registrar informs that the trial will go on as usual until 5pm.

Amhari continues reading his witness statement.

1.09pm: Court on a short break. Both parties agreed that there will be no lunch break and the hearing will go on until 2.30pm.

12.45pm: Amhari ends his witness statement.

12.35pm: Amhari says Najib, at his house, reimbursed Amhari for expenditure incurred for the China and Abu Dhabi trips.

He says he didn’t claim it from the government.

12.20pm: An emotional Amhari says it was the hardest decision he had made in his job.

He says he had respected Najib and felt it was his duty to go to China.

He says Low had joined him on the trip, and was there to get investments to pay off 1MDB debts.

12.16pm: In June 2016, Amhari says he was sent to China to strengthen diplomatic ties.

He says he was told by Najib to go alone and that Low would arrange all travel details.

Amhari says he had wanted to quit his job because he felt it was weighing him down, especially with the demise of Azlin.

12.03pm: Amhari says Low told him he would send some talking points to use in the discussion with Khaldoon, to do some damage control.

One to two weeks after the meeting with Najib, Amhari says he had gone to Abu Dhabi to Mubadala’s offices.

In the meeting, Khaldoon had told him that Malaysia had promised them many things but they were not met.

Khaldoon had expressed that he had wanted a new agreement.

Amhari says he would act as an intermediary between the two countries through the backchannel so the matter would not go to international court.

12pm: Amhari says in 2016, he was summoned to Najib’s house in Langgak Duta. Najib met him in the living room and requested that he go to Abu Dhabi to meet Khaldoon Mubarak, Mubadala’s CEO in the UAE.

Amhari says he was sent there as a facilitator to ensure the IPIC issue is not brought to court. This is because Abu Dhabi was going to bring up the “binding term sheet” between IPIC and 1MDB at the International Arbitration Court.

He says Najib told him that if Malaysia had gone to the international court for not paying its bonds, it would muddy relations with the UAE as well as posed political risks to Najib in the coming election.

He says Najib had asked him to convince Abu Dhabi to settle this issue outside of court.

“This was one of the confidential tasks Najib asked of me, because at that time the 1MDB issue was hotly publicised in the media,” Amhari says.

11.20am: The court hears that Low had prepared a document with “talking points” about 1MDB. Amhari says Low wrote on the document that he had nothing to do with 1MDB although the reality was that he was the mastermind behind 1MDB.

10.59am: Amhari says he met Low in Prince Hotel to obtain the documents. Amhari was told to destroy these documents once he was done with them. But he kept them.

10.58am: Around late 2014 to early 2015, Azlin and Amhari received documents from Low entitled “Addressing concerns on 1MDB particularly its balance sheet”. Amhari says these documents were given to them so that they would be able to answer questions about 1MDB should anyone come asking.

10.51am: Amhari says he believes that the money came from Low because Low had himself told Azlin that he intended to use those funds to win over voters in Penang in the upcoming 2013 general election.

Amhari says he never knew the status of the account nor did he ever find out where Low had obtained the money from.

10.50am: He says the staff at PMO were not allowed to question where the political funds were from because that would be seen as questioning Najib’s honesty.

10.49am: The money in the former account was transferred to the Bangkok account. Amhari says he never spent or moved any of the money and that it was Low who managed and transferred the money in the account.

10.47am: Amhari also went to Shanghai to open another bank account on Low’s instructions. But Amhari could not open the account in China. He then went to Bangkok, also on Low’s instructions, to open an account there. His application to open an account was accepted there.

10.45am: Azlin advised Amhari never to spend the money in these accounts. Amhari says he had US$800,000 in the bank account but he did not know where the money had come from. He says he called the bank for clarification but the bank said that the account was closed.

10.43am:  Amhari says that after some resistance, he and Azlin decided to open the accounts for fear that they will be threatened otherwise. Low also assured them that “boss will take care”. 

He said Azlin was also uncomfortable about the accounts. In subsequent meetings, Low had forced them to open the accounts, he says.

Low himself handled the opening of the accounts and he had sole power over these accounts although they were in Amhari and Azlin’s names.

10.40am: Amhari says that in 2012, Low instructed Azlin and him to open accounts in a foreign bank. They were told that the move had the “blessing” of whom they understood to be Najib.

Low said that these accounts were to be used for political reasons. Amhari says he was afraid that these accounts would be used for money-laundering.

10.27am: Court is in session. Amhari is called to the stand.

He resumes reading out his witness statement from where he left off yesterday.

10.02am: Judge allows a short break upon conclusion of case management.

9.47am:  Judge Sequerah sets the hearing date for Johor Umno’s application to strike out a MACC forfeiture suit.

He is also presiding over case management of eight other parties in the suit.