NAJIB, MOHD IRWAN FAIL TO GET DNAA FOR CBT CHARGE INVOLVING RM6.6 BILLION IN GOVT FUNDS

KUALA LUMPUR, July 22 (Bernama) -- The High Court here today dismissed the applications by Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak and former Treasury secretary-general Tan Sri Mohd Irwan Serigar Abdullah for a discharge not amounting to an acquittal (DNAA) against charges of criminal breach of trust (CBT) involving  RM6.6 billion in government funds.

 Lawyers Datuk Seri K. Kumaraendran and Muhammad Farhan Muhammad Shafee, representing Mohd Irwan Serigar and Najib, respectively, applied for the DNAA on the grounds that the prosecution failed to submit complete documents on the case for the defence to examine before the trial began.

Judge Datuk Muhammad Jamil Hussin, in dismissing the DNAA applications, gave the prosecution three months from August to submit all the documents and postponed the trial to Nov 14.

 "All parties are requested to be ready because the case will continue on that date, three months is sufficient for the prosecution to submit all the remaining documents before the trial begins.

"Please note the final date for the hearing, no more postponement," said the judge.

Earlier, Kumaraendran told the court that the documents not submitted by the prosecution are important because they were referred to his clients during the investigation by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).

"I would like to make a note that we have not received the documents since the last order was made where the prosecution said they would apply for the documents to be declassified. However, the deputy public prosecutor said they do not know when the documents will be declassified.

"If the prosecution insists on continuing (the trial) without the documents, my client will not get a fair trial. Therefore, I am asking for this case to be DNAA," he said.

Muhammad Farhan also cited the same reason for applying the DNAA for Najib.

However, Deputy Public Prosecutor Muhammad Saifuddin Hashim Musaimi objected to the DNAA applications on the grounds that the process of declassifying documents depended on the ministry involved and the prosecution had no authority to determine it.

On Oct 24, 2018, Najib, 70, and Mohd Irwan, 66, pleaded not guilty to six charges of CBT of RM6.6 billion in government funds involving payments to the International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC).

Najib and Mohd Irwan were jointly accused of committing the offences at the Finance Ministry Complex, Putrajaya between Dec 21, 2016, and Dec 18, 2017.

They were charged under Section 409 of the Penal Code read together with Section 34 of the same code which provides for a maximum of 20 years in jail and whipping as well as a fine, upon conviction.

-- BERNAMA