THE trial and conviction of former Goldman Sachs banker Roger Ng for bribery in relation to 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) was wrapped up in a US court in two months, but this impressive speed should not be compared to former prime minister Najib Razak’s corruption trials in Malaysia, legal experts say.

The scale of each case is different, while the many interlocutory applications in the former prime minister’s 1MDB trials are another reason why there have been delays, despite trials starting more than two years ago.

Other factors include the Covid-19 epidemic, which led to the closure of courtrooms and subsequent infections among both defence and prosecution teams.

Senior lawyer Mohamed Haniff Khatri Abdulla said Ng’s trial only involved a small issue pertaining to the US financial system and not the entirety of the fund.

“In the US, they charged him with committing a crime against the US financial system by defrauding 1MDB in his capacity in Goldman Sachs,” the lawyer told The Malaysian Insight.

“To support that, they obtained evidence from Tim Leissner, who was also charged (and pleaded guilty). 

Leissner was Ng’s boss at Goldman and pled guilty in exchange for a reduced sentence. He also appeared as the star witness at Ng’s trial.

“Ng’s case (only) involves the financial laws of the US.

“They didn’t ask about who started the company, how it was run and who were the directors. The involvement of other parties is all irrelevant.”

In Najib’s case, Haniff added that for prosecutors to establish their case, 1MDB’s history, who created it, how it was run, and Najib’s involvement, all had to be established.

The lawyer also noted that Najib has other trials too, and cannot attend each one simultaneously.

“He cannot be everywhere, every time. If 1MDB was ‘1USADB’ and there is a charge against, say, Donald Trump, the proceedings would be the same length if not longer,” he said.

In Malaysia, when there is a criminal trial, the defendant must be present in court, Haniff added.

Najib’s 1MDB trial started on August 28, 2019, with 13 witnesses called to the stand. The prosecution is set to call about 50 witnesses in total.

Najib, 68, is facing four charges of using his position to obtain RM2.3 billion in bribes from 1MDB funds and 21 charges of laundering this sum.

The trial has been full of delays due to the pandemic lockdowns, Covid-19 infections, Najib’s need to attend Parliament, as well defence counsel’s protracted cross-examination of witnesses.

For example, 1MDB’s former CEO Shahrol Halmi spent close to one year on the witness stand.

The Pekan MP has already been convicted in another 1MDB-related trial at the High Court, involving the state firm’s former subsidiary SRC International Sdn Bhd.

This trial started on April 4, 2019, and concluded on July 28, 2020.

Judge Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali sentenced Najib to 12 years in prison and fined him RM210 million. Najib lost an attempt to overturn the decision at the Court of Appeal and the case is pending before the Federal Court.

This trial was also riddled with delays, the most bizarre being the instance when Najib’s lead defence counsel Mohamed Shafee Abdullah could not attend the trial because he said he had been bitten by his dog.

Najib is also facing other charges in relation to tampering with 1MDB’s audit report and another charge in relation to SRC International.

Interlocutory applications

Lawyer Lim Wei Jiet said that the numerous interlocutory applications in the 1MDB case led to the main trial being delayed.

“The length of time can no doubt also be attributed to the countless interlocutory applications which resulted in the main trial to be delayed considerably,” Lim said.

“A recent example is the Najib’s team’s application to bring in a British Queen’s Counsel to the Federal Court hearing.”

While there are ways for the judges to step in to speed up the process, they tend not to be too strict because they do not want to be seen as denying a fair trial, Lim added.

“We need to understand that the integrity of the process is as important as the result.”

Meanwhile, a retired judge who wanted to remain anonymous said in the US, judges are stricter with postponements.

“(There have been) frequent requests for adjournments by either Najib or his counsel Shafee. Some are on flimsy grounds.

“Our trials tend to be protracted with several interlocutory applications. Like applying for recusal of the deputy public prosecutor,” the judge added, while agreeing with Haniff that Najib’s case is more complex than Ng’s, and that Covid-19 infections had also played a part in causing delays.

Ng was first indicted in 2019.

On Friday, US jurors found him guilty on all three counts of bribery in relation to 1MDB in a trial that spanned almost two months. 

He was found guilty on two counts of conspiring to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act by bribing government officials in Malaysia and Abu Dhabi through bond offerings that Goldman Sachs handled. 

Ng was also convicted on a charge of conspiracy to launder money. 

In Malaysia, Ng is facing four counts of violating the Capital Markets and Services Act 2007 (CMSA), accused of abetting Goldman Sachs in the sale of notes and bonds belonging to 1MDB subsidiaries by omitting material information and publishing untrue statements. 

He is charged under section 370(c) of the CMSA, which carries a punishment of up to 10 years imprisonment and a fine of at least RM1 million. 

On February 21 last year, High Court judge Muhammad Jami Hussin had ordered the four charges to be tried together after Ng was initially charged in two separate cases. Ng denies all charges.

Ng and his wife Lim Hwee Bin are also facing forfeiture of RM1.88 million the couple hold in their seven accounts in Maybank Bhd and RHB Bank Bhd.

It is unclear when he will be repatriated to face the charges here as he is set to appeal against the decision in the US. – April 11, 2022.