KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 23 ( NNN-BERNAMA) — An investigating officer with the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) told the High Court here Friday that Najib Razak claimed he spent RM3.3 million on gifts for the wife of the former prime minister of Qatar in 2014.
MACC senior assistant commissioner (Special Operations Division) Rosli Husain, 54, said this when questioned by Najib’s lawyer, Farhan Read, on the 57th day of Najib’s trial on alleged misappropriation of RM42 million belonging to SRC International Sdn Bhd.
Farhan: Najib, in his statement to MACC, said that the purchase of jewellery items at De Grisogono, Italy, using his credit cards, was for gifts to foreign leaders?
Rosli: That was what he (Najib) claimed.
De Grisogono is a Swiss luxury jewellery boutique set up in Geneva, Switzerland in 1993 by an Italian black diamond expert from Lebanon, Fawaz Gruosi.
Farhan: Did Najib explain to MACC that the gifts, worth RM3.3 million, were given to foreign leaders because of their close relations with Malaysia.
Rosli: Yes.
Farhan: Did Najib tell you that the gifts were for the wife of the former Prime Minister of Qatar?
Rosli: Yes.
Farhan: Did Najib mention about receiving a letter of appreciation from Noor Abdulaziz Abdulla Turki Al-Subaie?
Rosli: I have never seen the letter.
Farhan: However, the letter was addressed to Rosmah Mansor (Najib’s wife)?
Rosli: Rosmah never raised questions on the letter, which was dated Aug 15, 2014, even when she was giving her statements.
Prior to this, 47th prosecution witness, AmBank senior president Yeoh Eng Leong, 58, who was responsible for card approval and management of credit card fraud, told the court that two of Najib’s credit cards were used to spend RM3.3 million in one day at De Grisogono in Italy, on Aug 8, 2014.
According to Yeoh, a total of RM456,360.51 was spent using the Visa Platinum credit card and RM2,864,309.54 using the Master Platinum credit card.
On questions pertaining to bank transactions, Rosli said that RM32 million was transferred from SRC’s account to Ihsan Perdana Sdn Bhd (IPSB) and later transferred to Najib’s account in December 2014.
He concurred with Farhan on the transfer of RM10 million from an account belonging to Gandingan Mentari to IPSB and which was later transferred into Najib’s account.
Questioned by lawyer Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, also representing Najib, Rosli said he did not compare the signature of former SRC director Suboh Md Yassin that was on the hard copy to a copy of the signature that was sent through an email to the bank because there was no allegation of false signature by the bank or customers.
Najib, 66, is facing three counts of criminal breach of trust, one count of abusing his position and three counts of money laundering involving SRC funds amounting to RM42 million.
–NNN-BERNAMA