KUALA LUMPUR: Former SRC International Sdn Bhd CEO Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil had lied to the board of directors (BOD) regarding the repatriation of the company’s funds from abroad, the High Court was told.
Former SRC director Datuk Suboh Md Yassin, 73, who testified at the trial involving a US$1.18bil lawsuit filed by SRC against former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak and Nik Faisal, said there were many criminal elements and fraud in the management of the company.
Suboh, who is named as a third party respondent in the lawsuit, agreed with suggestion by Najib’s lawyer Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah that Nik Faisal, who is currently at large, did not bring the company’s funds back despite promising to do so to the BOD.The funds involved were RM3.6bil loaned from the Retirement Fund Inc (KWAP) to SRC, meant for investments.
Muhammad Shafee: I have proven to you and you agreed that there is a lot of forgery going on in the management?
Suboh: Yes.
Muhammad Shafee: Do you agree with me that Nik Faisal did not repatriate the funds despite promising to the board?
Suboh: Yes.
The witness also agreed with Muhammad Shafee’s suggestion that there were many “rogues” involved in the company’s management.
Under new management, SRC filed the legal action in May 2021, alleging that Najib had committed breach of trust, abuse of power, misappropriated the company’s funds and personally benefited from it.
It named Najib along with its former directors Suboh, Mohammed Azhar Osman Khairuddin, Nik Faisal, Datuk Che Abdullah @ Rashidi Che Omar, Datuk Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi and Tan Sri Ismee Ismail in May 2021.
However, later it removed six names, including Suboh, from the suit and retained Najib and Nik Faisal as the first and second defendants.
Additionally, Najib has brought the former named SRC International directors as third-party respondents in the suit.
The company is seeking damages, interests, costs and a court declaration that Najib is responsible for the company’s losses due to his breach of duties and trust, and is demanding that Najib pay back the US$1.18bil in losses that it has suffered.
It is also seeking US$120mil and US$2mil from Najib and Nik Faisal respectively, on account of fraudulent breach of fiduciary duties and breach of trust.
The hearing before Justice Ahmad Fairuz Zainol Abidin continues today.
