Najib arrives at MACC HQ to have his statement recorded

PUTRAJAYA: Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak has arrived at the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) headquarters here to have his statement recorded.

The former premier arrived at about 9.45am in a Toyota Vellfire amid tight security on Tuesday (May 22). 

Dressed in a blue blazer, Najib, who was accompanied by a team of lawyers, appeared calm despite the media frenzy that greeted him.

It was learnt that the Pekan MP would be giving statement to MACC officers in the interview room in the building.

Dozens of local and international media personnel had gathered at the MACC headquarters as early as 8am ahead of Najib's arrival.

Bernama had tweeted that the former premier left his home at Jalan Langgak Duta for the MACC at 9.21am.

The anti-graft agency served the former premier notice on Friday (May 18) to seek his cooperation over investigations into SRC International Sdn Bhd, a former subsidiary of the controversial 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB).

Najib tiba di SPRM pic.twitter.com/eptaJXeWrc — BERNAMA (@bernamadotcom) May 22, 2018

It is not known how many investigating officers will be involved or how long it will take but previous cases of questioning and investigations have gone up to 10 hours or more.

New MACC chief Datuk Seri Mohd Shukri Abdull told reporters to expect a “special briefing” on Tuesday, according to reports.

Najib has consistently denied any wrongdoing related to 1MDB since the scandal erupted in 2015, but he replaced an attorney-general and several MACC officers to shut down an investigation.

Najib has said the RM2.6bil (US$681mil) of funds deposited in his personal bank account were a donation from a Saudi royal, rebutting reports that it came from 1MDB.

Now answering to a different prime minister, the MACC has reopened its investigation, initially focusing on how RM42mil (US$10.6mil) went from SRC International to Najib’s account.

SRC was created in 2011 by Najib’s government to pursue overseas investments in energy resources, and was a unit of 1MDB until it was moved to the finance ministry in 2012.