THE High Court in Kuala Lumpur was told that former Batu Kawan Umno dvision chief Khairuddin Abu Hassan was the person who triggered the string of revelations of the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) scandal, which led to the downfall of the Barisan Nasional government in the 14th General Election (GE14).

Lawyer Mohamed Haniff Khatri Abdullah, 54, representing Khairuddin, said without the plaintiff’s effort and courage to report the 1MDB scandal on December 12, 2014, it would not have facilitated the authority’s efforts to resolve the case.

“(It was) the revelations that led to legal action being taken against the parties involved, either still in court, having been convicted and sentenced, or awaiting appeal or case disposal,” he said in his opening statement on the first day of the trial in Khairuddin’s suit against former inspector-general of police Khalid Abu Bakar and seven others over his detention and charges under the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 (Sosma).

The lawyer said Khairuddin lodged a report to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) in December 2014, which was followed by the establishment of a special task force involving former attorney-general Abdul Gani Patail, former Bank Negara governor Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz, former MACC chief commissioner Abu Kassim Mohamed and Khalid on January 15, 2015, but no effective action took place at that time.

“On July 27, 2015, the country saw Gani’s dismissal and betrayal of one individual in the special task force, which halted the efforts to reveal the 1MDB scandal. Khairuddin then proceeded to report 1MDB issues to the UK, France and Switzerland.

“As a result of these efforts, our country can see how follow-up action has been taken by authorities in other countries such as the United States Department of Justice (DOJ), the UK, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Singapore until the guilty parties were brought to justice, while several others are still facing justice,” he said.

Haniff said that upon Khairuddin’s return from abroad, the whole government under the then prime minister Najib Razak had been deployed and used to detain and arrest the plaintiff.

“The arrest has caused the plaintiff to lose his freedom from September 18, 2015, and he has taken all the necessary actions in court until he was granted release from Sosma detention on November 18, 2015, as well as acquitted and discharged from the charge under Section 124 (1) of the Penal Code on May 12, 2017,” he said.

Therefore, Haniff said Khairuddin was entitled to an assessment of damages reflecting the wrongful detention and charges imposed on him.

Meanwhile, when reading the witness statements, Haniff, who is also Khairuddin’s second witness, said Khairuddin has yet to pay the outstanding legal fees to his law firm Haniff Khatri totalling RM795,000.

“Since managing all his files on September 18, 2015, until the submission of legal fees on June 23, 2017, Khairuddin has not paid any part of the bills to date,” he said, adding that Khairuddin would make payments from time to time when he earned an income.

In May 2018, Khairuddin filed the suit against police officers Wan Aeidil Wan Abdullah and C. Muniandy, both investigating officers at the Bukit Aman Classified Crime Investigation Unit, Dang Wangi police headquarters deputy chief Habibi Majinji, and Khalid, who were named as the first to fourth defendants.

Also named as the fifth to eighth defendants were deputy public prosecutor Masri Mohd Daud, senior federal counsel Awang Armadajaya Awang Mahmud, Mohamed Apandi and the government of Malaysia.

Khairuddin alleged he was detained by the authorities on September 18, 2015, under Section 124C of the Penal Code and on September 23 the same year, after being released, he was rearrested under Sosma and was under detention before being charged at the magistrate’s court under Section 124L of the same act on allegations of attempting to sabotage the country’s banking and financial services.

In all, the plaintiff was detained for 60 days in Sungai Buloh Prison and on May 12, 2017, the court was told that the prosecution would not be continuing prosecution and Khairuddin was discharged and acquitted of the charges.

The plaintiff alleged the action by all the defendants in detaining and charging him in court was conducted with malicious intent and violated his right to freedom under the federal constitution and tarnished his reputation and image as a politician.

The trial continues tomorrow before Judiciary Commissioner Quay Chew Soon and Khairuddin is expected to take the stand. – Bernama, April 26, 2021.