VIDEO | 3.50 min

US-based jeweller Jacob & Co has corroborated the explanation of Malaysian Prime Minister’s wife Rosmah Mansor that the controversial RM24 million diamond ring brought into the country under her name was not for her and neither did she purchase the stone.

Philip Nassimi, MD of Jacob & Co rosmah ring 2 In a video interview, Jacob & Co fine jewellery director Philip Nassimi ( left ) said the 30.11-carat Natural Fancy Blue Grade Cushion Diamond Ring was in fact for the viewing of Maira Nazarbayev, the mother of Daniyar Nazarbayev who is engaged to Rosmah’s daughter Nooryana Najwan.

“It was shipped for exhibition and inspection purposes only, not for sale - To the attention of Maira Nazarbayev, (who is) in the care of Madam Rosmah Mansor.

“Due to the fact that Maira Nazarbayev was residing as a guest at the prime minister’s residence, the item had to be shipped in such a manner.

NONE “The reason why in the House Airway Bill, it was mentioned Madam Rosmah Mansor’s name, was because in order to ship a valuable into Malaysia - Kuala Lumpur - it had to be shipped in the care of a local Malaysian and not a foreigner,” he said.

He explained that the House Airway Bill is a common document used for transporting US valuables domestically and internationally.

The 3 minute 50 seconds video published by blogger Raja Petra Kamaruddin yesterday showed Nassimi producing customs documents proving that the company had received the ring back.

‘We got the ring back’

“The item was shipped on April 15, 2011, valued at US$8 million to Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur for inspection purposes only and immediately thereafter the same item re-entered the USA on May 16, 2011.

“This is document from the US customs and border protection, Department of Homeland Security proving the item re-entered the United States and was not sold,” he said.

However, there was some confusion as to exactly when the ring was returned as Nassimi had given a different date to the time that Jacob and Co received the ring.

“When the inspection was over, the aforementioned ring was later shipped via Malca-Amit from Malaysia through the port of Singapore and on May 12, 2011, was returned to Jacob and Co headquarters and delivered physically on May 13, 2011,” he had said.

Nassimi explained the ring was only sold last year to a different customer.

“The ring had been sold this past summer, in June 2012 to another of our highly esteemed VIP clients whose name I cannot mention and is currently here in our headquarters for resizing purposes.

“The ring was not purchased by Madam Rosmah nor Nazarbayev,” he said.

Rosmah, in her recent biography, had insisted that the ring was for Maira’s viewing in preparation for their children’s engagement on June 17, 2011.

The Nazarbayev family, too, had been embroiled in its own controversy with accusations of swindling, but Maira had dismissed the allegations as “absurd”.