Najib Fails In Bid To Stay Rm2 28b 1mdb Trial

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Former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak’s RM2.28 billion 1MDB corruption trial will still go on before the Kuala Lumpur High Court next week.
The Court of Appeal in Putrajaya this morning denied the former finance minister’s application to stay the trial, pending disposal of his appeal to recuse judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah from presiding over the trial.
Back on Aug 18 before the High Court, Sequerah dismissed Najib’s bid for the judge to withdraw from the 1MDB trial, on grounds that Sequerah used to be partners with the recently arrested 1MDB-linked former fugitive Jasmine Loo in a law firm 15 years ago.
In a unanimous decision today, the three-person appellate bench, chaired by Hadhariah Syed Ismail and comprised of fellow judges Ahmad Zaidi Ibrahim and SM Komathy Suppiah, ruled that there are no special circumstances that justify a stay on the 1MDB trial.
"We do not agree that the appeal (to recuse Sequerah) would be rendered nugatory (pointless) if the trial is to proceed (before the High Court on Monday to Wednesday next week).
"Public interest is required for the trial to proceed. The trial of this case is at an advanced stage," Hadhariah said, pointing out that the 1MDB trial has already notched over 176 days since the trial first began in 2019.
Deputy public prosecutor Kamal Baharin Omar led the prosecution.
Sequerah’s defence
In denying Najib’s bid to recuse him, Sequerah ruled that mere past employment is not enough to show a real danger of bias, as there was no contact between him and Loo since she left the law firm Zain & Co in 2008.
Sequerah left the firm in 2014 when he was elevated to the bench.
The judge pointed out there has been no communication, either personal or professional, between him and Loo since 2008, with Loo having been engaged as general counsel with 1MDB in 2011.
"On Loo's involvement in the case, it commenced in 2011 when she (was engaged by) 1MDB. This has nothing to do with the time I was at Zain & Co (with Loo)," Sequerah said.
He added that the defence team not only failed to show any existing personal or professional relationship between him and Loo, but it also failed to provide evidence of pecuniary or direct relationship with Loo.
The former lawyer pointed out that this was strengthened by the fact that he was in the law firm's litigation department then, while Loo was in a separate department of the firm that deals with corporate matters.
Lead defence counsel Muhammad Shafee AbdullahSequerah also denied lead defence counsel Muhammad Shafee Abdullah’s application to stay the trial pending disposal of Najib’s appeal to the Court of Appeal to recuse the judge.
Previously during the hearing of the recusal bid, Shafee submitted there was a perception of risk of bias on Sequerah’s part, who was a partner in Zain & Co when Loo was made a partner in 2004.
However, deputy public prosecutor Kamal Baharin Omar countered that Loo was only involved with 1MDB in 2011, which was three years after she left the law firm in 2008.
Last month, Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail announced that Loo was arrested following her surrender to the Malaysian authorities after many years on the run.
Najib’s charges
In relation to the ongoing trial before Sequerah, Najib is facing four counts of abuse of power and 21 counts of money laundering involving RM2.28 billion from 1MDB, a sovereign wealth fund wholly owned by the Minister of Finance Incorporated (MOF Inc).
For the four abuse of power charges, the former Pekan MP is alleged to have committed the offences at AmIslamic Bank Bhd’s Jalan Raja Chulan branch in Bukit Ceylon, Kuala Lumpur, between Feb 24, 2011, and Dec 19, 2014.
On the 21 money laundering counts, the accused is purported to have committed the offences at the same bank between March 22, 2013, and Aug 30, 2013. - Mkini

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