KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk Seri Najib Razak's defence team has accused former 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) general counsel Jasmine Loo Ai Swan of giving a "self-serving" statement to save herself from the company's civil suit to recover US$8 million funds from her.
However, the former lawyer denied Najib's lead counsel Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah's contention by stating that she was only giving evidence on what transpired in the "global scale" financial scandal.
The drama occurred when Shafee cross-examined Jasmine who was the key prosecution witness in Najib's corruption trial for misappropriating millions of 1MDB funds before presiding judge Datuk Collin Lawrence Sequerah.
The senior lawyer pressed the witness on the 1MDB decision to enter a Murabaha financing agreement causing the sovereign wealth fund to lose almost US$1 billion in 2010.
Loo said all necessary documents pertaining to the dealing were given by the fugitive businessman Low Taek Jho to Najib who was then the chairman of the 1MDB's board of advisors.
However, Shafee claimed that Loo's statement was hearsay as she testified based on Low's information, which lacked direct evidence.
Shafee later zoomed into 1MDB's civil suit against Loo which the latter said she had yet to file her defence statement pending consultation with her legal team.
On Feb 21, the civil High Court judge Datuk Atan Mustaffa Yussof Ahmad instructed the former lawyer to file her defence before April 22.
The sovereign wealth funds also named former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, former chief financial officer Terrence Geh Choh Heng, former executive director Casey Tang Keng Chee, and former chief investment officer Vincent Beng as defendants.
Also named were former chief operating officer Radhi Mohamad, former investment director Kelvin Tan Kay Jim, and former SRC International Bhd chief executive officer Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil.
The plaintiffs asserted that the defendants committed breach of trust, breached statutory duties, abused power, conspired, and misappropriated 1MDB funds.
Najib, 70, is standing trial on 25 charges of abuse of power and money laundering over alleged 1MDB funds amounting to RM2.28 billion deposited into his AmBank accounts between February 2011 and December 2014.
