60 witnesses summoned at trial of former Malaysian Prime Minister
(Baonghean) - The Malaysian Supreme Court on August 28 began a criminal trial against former Prime Minister Najib Razak for corruption at the Malaysian Development Investment Fund (1MDB) worth about 547 million USD. Mr. Najib Razak had his first court appearance in April, but this time he faces the biggest trial with the most charges.
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| Former Prime Minister Najib Razak. Photo: AP |
At the trial, a senior assistant prosecutor read out the indictment, accusing Mr. Najib of abusing his position to steal investment funds on a massive scale, buying everything from real estate to works of art, as well as laundering money.
The defendant, Najib Razak, who was previously released on bail, has denied all the charges against him, saying they are politically motivated. Six witnesses will be questioned in court on the day of the investment trial. They are officials from the Malaysian Parliamentary Affairs Committee and the Malaysian Prime Minister's Office. More than 60 witnesses are expected to be called during the trial.
Najib Razak took office as Prime Minister of Malaysia in 2009, and immediately established the 1MDB fund with the aim of focusing on large investment projects in areas such as energy, transportation and agriculture. However, in 2015, The Wall Street Journal first published a “sensational” article about the presence of 700 million USD in Mr. Najib’s personal account, this amount was “siphoned” from the 1MDB fund.
Initially, the government denied all reports, even threatening the newspaper with lawsuits and shutting down opposition media in the country. Malaysia’s police chief called publications that published stories about the incident an “attempted coup.” Despite efforts to clear the papers of corruption charges, the government was forced to open an investigation under pressure from the public and the press, which resulted in the embezzlement of public funds.
This behavior also led to the defeat of Mr. Najib’s ruling coalition in the general election last May. After losing the prime ministership, Mr. Najib was arrested and charged with dozens of crimes related to the 1MDB fund.
Meanwhile, the new government of Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad won the general election because it issued a campaign platform, pledging to investigate and hold accountable all parties involved in the 1MDB fund's violations.
