‘CBT docs will be reclassified’

Lawyer: Najib and Irwan paperwork all there but it takes time to process

KUALA LUMPUR: Documents under the Official Secrets Act will be reclassified in the RM6.636bil criminal breach of trust (CBT) trial involving Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak and former Treasury secretary-general Tan Sri Dr Mohd Irwan Serigar Abdullah.

Datuk Seri Gopal Sri Ram, who was appointed by the Attorney General’s Chambers to lead the prosecution, told Sessions Court judge Azman Ahmad that they had to get the appropriate steps to reclassify the documents.

“All documents are there but it takes time to reclassify,” he said during case management yesterday.

Earlier, he had also told Judge Azman that they were in the process of serving 224 documents – repre- senting between 70% and 80% of the total – that they intended to tender in the trial.

Sri Ram said in the meantime, there was an application to transfer the case to the High Court, which had been fixed before a High Court deputy registrar today.

“We will be seeking an early date of transfer,” he said, adding that he had applied for Dec 7 as the next case management date.

Judge Azman then fixed Dec 7 for case management.

Counsel Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah acted for Najib while lawyers Datuk K. Kumaraendran and Datuk Geethan Ram Vincent represented Irwan.

On Oct 25, Najib and Irwan, who were jointly accused with six CBT counts involving the government funds, had claimed trial to the charges.

The first two charges read that Najib and Dr Mohd Irwan, who were entrusted with dominion over RM1.2bil and RM655mil respectively, had committed CBT in respect of those sums.

The third charge alleged that the two men committed CBT relating to RM220mil in the government’s Federal Consolidated Fund which was allocated for administrative expenses for the KL International Airport. The RM1.3bil at the centre of the fourth charge was in the same fund and classified as an allocation for subsidy and cash aid.

The fifth and sixth charges were for allegedly committing CBT in respect of 1.95bil yuan (RM1.261bil) and RM2bil.

All the offences were allegedly committed at the Finance Ministry office in Putrajaya between Dec 21, 2016, and Dec 18, 2017.

Meanwhile, former spy chief Datuk Hasanah Ab Hamid’s case was mentioned before Sessions Court judge Rozina Ayob during which Deputy Public Prosecutor Muhamad Iskandar Ahmad said 46 documents had been tendered.

DPP Muhamad Iskandar said among the documents were a list of seized items, invoices, photographs of the exhibits and an appointment letter as Malaysian External Intelligence Organisation director-general.

Hasanah’s counsel Datuk Shaharudin Ali then told the court that his client’s bank account had been frozen and applied for direct access.