Abu Kassim was replaced to protect Najib from 1MDB investigation — Witness

KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court here was told Tuesday that the then Chief Commissioner of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Tan Sri Abu Kassim Mohamed was replaced to protect Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak from being investigated and charged in connection with the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) scandal in 2016.

It was disclosed by MACC senior superintendent Nur Aida Arifin, 37, when verifying the content of an audio recording of a conversation between Najib, his wife Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor, and his former special officer, Datuk Amhari Efendi Nazaruddin.

“As the then prime minister, Najib took several actions that had an impact on the investigation of the case. After Tan Sri Abu Kassim was replaced by Tan Sri Dzulkifli Ahmad, I received instructions not to continue the investigation,” she said.

However, when deputy public prosecutor Ahmad Akram Gharib asked her the name of the person who gave her the instructions, the 49th prosecution witness said: “I don’t remember, but I do receive the instructions. I wrote it in my investigation diary.”

The court also heard an audio recording of a conversation between Najib and the executive officer of Mubadala in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Khaldoon Al-Mubarak, where the witness stated that the discussion was about the production of a film by Najib’s stepson, Riza Shahriz Abdul Aziz, using funds from 1MDB.

In Tuesday’s proceedings, nine audio recordings were played in court, allegedly involving Najib, Rosmah, and several high-profile individuals connected to the 1MDB investigation.

Among the voices identified by the witness were those of Dzulkifli, former Member of Parliament for Baling Datuk Seri Abdul Azeez Abdul Rahim, Najib’s former private secretary Tan Sri Shukry Mohd Salleh, Amhari, United Arab Emirates (UAE) Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed Zayed Al Nahyan, and Khaldoon.