Anwar Must Answer For Dropping 1mdb Lawsuit Against Riza Says Activist

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Prime Minister cum Finance Minister Anwar Ibrahim must answer for 1MDB’s move to drop its civil suit against Najib Abdul Razak’s stepson Riza Aziz and Red Granite, said activist Charles Hector.
Noting that the Minister of Finance Incorporated owns 1MDB, he demanded Anwar to explain 1MDB’s decision to drop the case and resign his position as finance minister.
“Blame must lie on the finance minister, the prime minister and the cabinet since this is a government-owned company, not simply a government-linked company (where the government) owns part of the shares.
“Anwar may be a ‘most forgiving’ prime minister, and so he can be so for actions done by others that affected him only personally - like he forgives (former inspector-general of police Abdul Rahim Noor) for giving him a ‘black eye’.
“But the crimes of Najib, his wife Rosmah Mansor, his stepson Riza, and Anwar’s now Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi are crimes against the people of Malaysia. So, Anwar, even though a ‘good friend’, should act for Malaysia - and Malaysians have not forgiven yet,” he said in a statement today.
He added that the parliamentary select committees should also investigate 1MDB’s decision to drop its lawsuit against Riza (above).
Activist Charles HectorFor the record, Riza and Zahid have been granted a discharge not amounting to acquittal (DNAA) for the criminal proceedings against them. In Riza’s case, the DNAA was part of a plea bargain in 2020 that required him to return millions of ringgit.
Najib and Rosmah each have several cases still being litigated in court.
Charles also argued that criminals should not be let off the hook simply because they returned the fruits of their crime. This can only be a mitigating factor for the court to consider imposing a lighter sentence.
He also questioned whether the money allegedly misappropriated by Riza had been returned in the first place.
Riza’s charges
Riza was charged with five counts of money laundering in 2019 for allegedly receiving money misappropriated from 1MDB through the Red Granite’s bank account. Red Granite is a Hollywood production company that he co-founded and produced the films “The Wolf of Wall Street” and “Dumb and Dumber To”.
However, his case was dropped the following year on condition that he return the money. Otherwise, the prosecution reserves the right to prosecute him again.
In 2021, however, 1MDB and its subsidiaries filed another suit in the civil courts against Riza, Red Granite Pictures Incorporated and Red Granite Capital Limited.
They claimed Riza and his two companies purportedly received US$248 million (about RM1.09 billion) in funds that they allegedly misused for personal gain, including by financing film production and buying up various properties.
The suit was withdrawn in open court on Monday without any reason.
The withdrawal came a week after MACC special operations director Zamri Zainul Abidin testified that Riza and his lawyers sent representations to the Attorney-General’s Chambers that they would work towards a global settlement on the recovery of the US$248 million. - Mkini

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