Former prime minister Najib Razak will face trial in September this year for his money laundering case involving SRC International Sdn Bhd, a former subsidiary of 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB).
The High Court judge K. Muniandy fixed September 17 to 19 and September 23 to 24 as the trial dates, after the prosecution requested more time to prepare their case1.
Najib’s lawyer Muhammad Shafee Abdullah had asked the court to drop the case or grant a discharge not amounting to an acquittal (DNAA), citing the long delay and the prejudice to his client.
However, the judge said that the case should proceed to trial and that he would consider a DNAA or a full acquittal if the prosecution was still not ready by September.
Najib is facing three charges of money laundering involving RM27 millions of SRC funds that were allegedly transferred into his personal bank accounts between December 2014 and February 2015.
He has pleaded not guilty to all the charges and claimed that he was unaware of the source of the money.
The case has been pending since 2019 and has been postponed several times due to various reasons, including the Covid-19 pandemic and the change of government.
The SRC case is one of several corruption cases that Najib is facing in relation to the 1MDB scandal, which has tarnished Malaysia’s reputation and triggered investigations in several countries.
Najib has also been charged with abuse of power, criminal breach of trust and money laundering involving RM42 million of SRC funds in another case, which he is appealing against his conviction and 12-year jail sentence.
In addition, he is facing four charges of abuse of power and 21 charges of money laundering involving RM2.28 billion of 1MDB funds in another case, which is still ongoing.
Najib has maintained his innocence and accused the previous Pakatan Harapan government of persecuting him for political reasons.
He has also claimed that he was misled by fugitive businessman Low Taek Jho, also known as Jho Low, who is the alleged mastermind behind the 1MDB scandal.
