1MDB management met in London in 2011 to discuss additional RM1 bln funds, court told

KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court here was told yesterday that the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) board of directors held a meeting in London on May 16, 2011 to discuss the agreement regarding the additional RM1 billion 1MDB-PetroSaudi investment joint venture under the Murabaha financing scheme.

Former 1MDB company secretary Goh Gaik Kim, 54, who was also present at the meeting, along with Tan Sri Che Lodin Wok Kamaruddin, Datuk Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi, Tan Sri Ismee Ismail, Jasmine Loo Ai Swan and Ashvin Jethanand, said arrangements to hold the meeting at Hilton Hotel, London were made by the 1MDB management.

The 17th prosecution witness was reading from her witness testimony at the trial of former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak over charges of embezzling 1MDB funds worth RM2.4 billion.

Referring to the meeting’s minutes dated May 16, 2011, she said that before the meeting began, Loo, who was the lawyer for 1MDB, had handed three sets of documents to her for safekeeping, the Board of Directors’ Resolution, the Ordinary Shareholders’ Resolution and the Preferred Shareholders’ Resolution.

“The documents relate to the Investment of an additional RM1 billion under the Murabaha Financing Agreement with 1MDB Petrosaudi.

“All the documents were already signed by the 1MDB board of directors and Datuk Seri Najib.

“However, the ma er (the documents) were not discussed during the meeting,” she said.

She testified that at the meeting, several important ma ers discussed included the presentation made by Loo about the Murabaha financing scheme.

Goh, who is now the company secretary for TRX City Sdn Bhd, said that she returned to Malaysia the following day a er the meeting.

“I received the itinerary of the visit.

“As I recall, there were some events held before and a er the board of directors’ meeting, but I only a ended the board of directors’ meeting,” the witness, who served as company secretary for 1MDB from March 31, 2011 before resigning on April 1, 2016.

During proceedings in 2019, former 1MDB chief executive officer Shahrol Azral told the court that Najib had approved an additional RM1 billion in funds in 2011 under the 1MDB-PetroSaudi joint venture.

Najib, 68, is facing four charges of using his position to obtain bribes totalling RM2.3 billion from 1MDB and 21 charges of illegal money laundering involving the same amount.

The trial in front of Judge Datuk Collin Lawrence Sequerah resumes today.