‘WE JUST NEED NIK FAISAL’

A SOURCE close to the investigation into SRC International, a former 1MBD subsidiary, says if the authorities can get more details from its director, Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil Nik Othman Arif Kamil, they will not need Jho Low's input to conclude their probe.

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INVESTIGATIONS into the SRC International financial scandal can be concluded if the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) can get hold of the company’s director, Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil Nik Othman Arif Kamil.

A source familiar with the investigation said the case could be solved even without fugitive financier Low Taek Jho or Jho Low.

“If we have Nik Faisal, we can conclude the probe into the SRC case, even without Jho Low.

“Nik Faisal is the person of high interest in the case,” the source told the New Straits Times.

The source said MACC first recorded Nik Faisal’s statement in Indonesia in 2015, followed by SRC director Datuk Suboh Md Yassin, also in Indonesia.

However, he said, investigators probing the case were not satisfied with their statements but could not do more due to jurisdictional constraints.

“When you are on someone else’s turf, you cannot simply execute your powers in their country,” he said.

When asked why MACC did not seek assistance from Jakarta to facilitate Nik Faisal’s arrest, the source said: “Someone was protecting him there.”

The source said Nik Faisal was a very important person to the case and would most likely be the star witness.

He said although MACC did not know where Nik Faisal was, Interpol had requested to place not only Nik Faisal, but also Jho Low under its “red alert” watch.

Last Thursday, MACC issued warrants of arrest for the two and a notice for them to contact the commission immediately to help in investigations.

Low, through his lawyers, had said he would cooperate.

To date, he has not contacted the commission.

The source also confirmed that MACC recorded Suboh’s statement last week, the second time, after returning to Malaysia after being on the run from the authorities

for three years.

SRC is a former subsidiary of 1Malaysia Development Bhd, from which officials are alleged to have stolen billions and siphoned them into their pockets.

Former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak has given his statement on SRC to MACC three times.

In Najib’s latest visits to the MACC, he was asked why more than RM42 million (US$10.6 million) was transferred into his private bank account from SRC, using multiple intermediary companies.

The first round of questioning

was held on Dec 5, 2015, where he was questioned over the case and the RM2.6 billion donation.

He and his wife, Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor, who was questioned by the commission last week, are banned from leaving the country.

Najib has consistently denied any wrongdoing in relation to 1MDB since the scandal erupted in 2015.

SRC was created in 2011 by the previous administration to pursue overseas investments in energy resources and was a unit of 1MDB until it was moved to the Finance Ministry in 2012.