Altantuya wanted to collect fees for 'submarine purchase' translations
Altantuya Shaariibuu had intended to collect payments from her former lover Abdul Razak Baginda for her translation work in relation to the government's alleged purchase of submarines, her cousin told the Shah Alam High Court today.
Namiraa Gerelmaa was the third witness in the RM100 million civil suit filed by the slain Mongolian national's family against Razak Baginda, the government, and two others convicted of her murder.
Namiraa, along with their friend identified as Urintuya Gal-Ochir, had accompanied Altantuya...
Altantuya Shaariibuu had intended to collect payments from her former lover Abdul Razak Baginda for her translation work in relation to the government's alleged purchase of submarines, her cousin told the Shah Alam High Court today.
Namiraa Gerelmaa was the third witness in the RM100 million civil suit filed by the slain Mongolian national's family against Razak Baginda, the government, and two others convicted of her murder.
Namiraa, along with their friend identified as Urintuya Gal-Ochir, had accompanied Altantuya during her last trip to Kuala Lumpur in October 2006.
"She (Altantuya) said she was in a relationship with Razak Baginda and wanted to meet him," she said to questions from lawyer Sangeet Kaur Deo.
"She also told me that she had done some translation work for him and wanted to collect (payment) from him."
Namiraa said she made the trip to Malaysia after she was invited to accompany Altantuya, and that she was only told of her cousin's plans shortly after their arrival.
"She also told me that the Malaysian side was going to purchase submarines from the Russians and the meeting was held in France.
"She said that Razak Baginda wanted her to translate from English to Russian and vice-versa for that meeting. She told me there was an agreement."
After arriving in Kuala Lumpur, Namiraa said Altantuya opened up about her relationship with Razak Baginda, including how the couple were living like husband and wife to a certain extent, and that he wanted them to have a baby together.
"Altantuya told me she had tried to contact him many times before coming here but there was no response. So she had to come here to meet him," she added.
During cross-examination, Razak Baginda's lawyer Manjeet Singh Dhillon suggested that Namiraa had "exaggerated" many details in her current witness statement, including the alleged purchase of submarines by the government.
Both Namiraa and Urintuya had testified as witnesses during the Altantuya murder trial in 2007.
Manjeet referred to evidence submitted by Urintuya in the murder trial that Altantuya only talked about coming to Malaysia to meet Razak Baginda, but that there were no other details.
"I put it to you that what Urintuya had said in her statement was all that Altantuya had said about Razak Baginda, nothing more, nothing less," said the lawyer, to which Namiraa disagreed.
Similarly, senior federal counsel Norinna Bahadun, representing the government, said Namiraa was submitting fresh evidence which "never existed" during the criminal trial, and was "tainted" by various media reports on Altantuya's death.
To further questions from lawyer Ramkarpal Singh, Namiraa agreed that she had not mentioned these details, including the alleged submarine deal during the criminal trial.
The former freelance journalist claimed that she was "afraid," and that there was no opportunity for her to do so at the time.
The hearing continues tomorrow.
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