Court sets May 31 to hear Najib’s bid to obtain 1MDB-linked documents

KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court has fixed May 31 to hear two discovery applications by Datuk Seri Najib Razak in his bid to obtain 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB)-linked documents involving investment bank Goldman Sachs and Tan Sri Zeti Akhtar Aziz.

The former prime minister had filed the first of the two applications on March 24.

That notice of motion was to compel the prosecution in his RM2.28bil 1MDB trial to disclose banking documents linked to Zeti, the former Bank Negara governor, on claims that her family allegedly received monies from fugitive financier Low Taek Jho, also known as Jho Low.

On April 5, he filed the second discovery application for a confidential settlement agreement between Malaysia and US-based Goldman Sachs Group in 2020.

It was reported that Goldman Sachs had reached an agreement with Malaysia to pay US$2.5bil (RM10.4bil) in cash and guarantee the return of US$1.4bil (RM5.8bil) from 1MDB assets seized around the world in exchange for Malaysia to drop criminal charges against the US bank.

Also in the second application, Najib is seeking the transcripts or forensics report from the phones of Tim Leissner, a former Goldman Sachs partner in Asia, as well as data on Goldman Sachs’ server involving Leissner’s communications.

During open court proceedings here on Friday (April 16), Deputy Public Prosecutor Mohamad Mustaffa P. Kunyalam told the court that the prosecution needed time to reply to both applications.

“We received the cause papers (of the second discovery application) on April 12.

“We seek to reply to the applications and we need at least two weeks, ” he said.

DPP Mohamad Mustaffa also told the court that a similar application (referring to the first discovery application on Zeti-linked documents) had been scheduled for hearing on May 20 and the prosecution proposed that both applications are heard together on a later date.

“The parties have agreed on May 31 for the hearing, ” he added.

Najib’s lead counsel Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah did not object to the prosecution’s request for an extension and agreed to the joint hearing.

Justice Collin Lawrence Sequerah then fixed May 31 to hear both discovery applications.

Previously, the court had fixed May 20 to hear the first discovery application.

Najib, who was present during Friday’s proceedings, is currently on trial for four counts of abuse of power and 21 counts of money laundering involving RM2.28bil of 1MDB's funds.