Low claimed he had good relationship with Najib: T'ganu sultan's sister

Summary

• The younger sister of former Agong and current Terengganu ruler Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin testified that fugitive businessperson Low Taek Jho (Jho Low) told her he (Low) has a good relationship with then deputy prime minister Najib Abdul Razak.

• Tengku Rahimah Sultan Mahmud was testifying on behalf of Najib in the RM2.27 billion 1MDB abuse of power and money laundering trial.

• The state royalty introduced Low to Sultan Mizan before the formation of the Terengganu Investment Authority, the predecessor of 1MDB.

1MDB TRIAL | Low Taek Jho (Jho Low) claimed to have a good relationship with Najib Abdul Razak as far back as at least 2008, testified the younger sister of Terengganu’s Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin.

Tengku Rahimah Sultan Mahmud today told the High Court in Putrajaya what the fugitive businessperson told her about the then deputy prime minister and finance minister Najib Abdul Razak.

Tengku Rahimah, who was Najib’s defence witness, was replying during cross-examination by deputy public prosecutor Ahmad Akram Gharib during the RM2.27 billion 1MDB abuse of power and money laundering trial against the accused.

Akram: Was there at any time (when Tengku Rahimah met Low) did Low impress on Tengku (Rahimah) that he has a good relationship with Najib?

Tengku Rahimah: Yes, there was.

She noted that when she first met Low, she was impressed by his calm demeanour and intelligence.

Rahimah said she did not have a reason to doubt Low when she introduced him to Sultan Mizan.

Over the course of the trial, several prosecution witnesses testified that Low has a tendency to namedrop when dealing with others.

Prosecution witnesses testified that Low was involved in the establishment of 1MDB’s predecessor, the Terengganu Investment Authority (TIA), in February 2009.

Later that year, the federal government via the Minister of Finance Incorporated (MOF Inc) took over TIA from the Terengganu state government and renamed it into 1MDB, a sovereign wealth fund.

It should be noted prosecution witnesses also testified that the then Yang di-Pertuan Agong and Terengganu ruler Sultan Mizan was furious with Low and described the businessperson as an unsavoury character.

Najib recently wrapped up his testimony to defend himself in the criminal trial after 26 days.

Mastermind Low, Saudi donation

On Oct 30, the criminal court ordered Najib to enter his defence over four abuse of power and 21 money laundering charges involving RM2.27 billion from 1MDB.

Trial judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah ruled that the prosecution succeeded in establishing a prima facie (answerable) case against Najib due to the strength of some 50 witness testimonies.

The former prime minister was first charged in 2018 and the trial started the year after. The prosecution stage of the trial lasted six years.

Throughout the criminal trial, Najib maintained he had no knowledge or involvement in wrongdoing at 1MDB, and that all embezzlement there was solely masterminded by fugitive businessperson Low and its management.

The accused also relied on the defence that he was led to believe that the money that went into his account was a political donation from Saudi Arabia, as promised by the late monarch King Abdullah during the 2010 meeting.

The accused is serving a six-year jail sentence since August 2022 over a separate criminal case involving abuse of power, criminal breach of trust and money laundering involving RM42 million of funds from SRC International, a former subsidiary of 1MDB.

Later, SRC became wholly owned by MOF Inc, which also fully owned 1MDB.

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COMMENT | Najib has not admitted or atoned to seek redemption

Najib wraps up 1MDB testimony after 26 days on the stand