NAJIB Razak’s lawyers and prosecutors, who seek a jail term for the former prime minister for allegedly misappropriating RM42 million in public funds, will be making their oral submissions this week as the SRC International trial approaches its end. 

The submissions are scheduled for three hearing dates at the Kuala Lumpur High Court starting today and ending on Wednesday – 14 months after the trial began on April 3 last year. 

Najib’s lawyers, led by Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, 68, will begin making their oral submissions this morning.

The defence filed a 643-page written submission on May 5 while the prosecution filed a 306-page written submission. The prosecution’s and defence’s subsequent replies totalled 336 pages and 446 pages respectively. 

The prosecution’s oral submission will be led by ad hoc prosecutor V. Sithambaram, 68, a seasoned criminal lawyer. 

After submissions are concluded, presiding judge Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali, 52, a graduate of Oxford University who headed Maybank’s corporate and legal services before joining the judiciary, will later set a date to deliver his verdict.

SRC International, formed on January 7, 2011, was a subsidiary of 1Malaysia Development Bhd before ownership was transferred the following year to the Minister of Finance (MoF) Inc, headed by Najib.

Between December 24, 2014 and February 6, 2014, a total of RM42 million was transferred into Najib’s AmBank accounts via SRC International subsidiary Gandingan Mentari Sdn Bhd and corporate social responsibility (CSR) partner Ihsan Perdana Sdn Bhd.

After the prosecution presented its case, the defence stage was called on November 11 last year when Nazlan ruled that the prosecution had established a prima facie case against Najib. 

In his oral judgment, Nazlan agreed with the prosecution’s suggestions that unlike most others government-linked companies, SRC International was “under the control and direction of the accused from ‘Day 1’.”

The judge also agreed that Najib “wielded considerable powers” before 1MDB and MoF Inc became the company’s shareholders and that he further solidified his controlling position by making himself the adviser emeritus of SRC International, whose advice as prime minister must be sought on key matters. 

Nazlan said Najib had also “failed without reasonable excuse to take reasonable steps” to ascertain whether or not the RM42 million, transferred into his accounts at Ambank, was the proceeds from an unlawful activity. 

Nazlan then concluded that the prosecution had “adduced credible evidence proving each and every essential ingredient of the offences” seven criminal charges Najib faces – three counts of criminal breach of trust (CBT), three counts of money laundering and one count of abuse of position in relation to the SRC funds. 

The 67-year-old accused was the first defence witness to testify on December 3. A further 18 witnesses were called, with the defence stage concluded on March 11.   

This is the country’s first criminal trial involving a former prime minister. Najib faces a total of 42 charges, spread out over five criminal trials – with three ongoing. 

The ongoing 1MDB trial involves RM2.282 billion in public funds that Najib allegedly received between 2011 and 2014 while at another ongoing trial, Najib faces one abuse of power charge for tampering with the 1MDB audit report. – June 1, 2020.