AGC Rejects Claims Of 'Flawed Prosecution' After Najib’s DNAA In Second SRC Case

KUALA LUMPUR, June 20 (Bernama) --  The Attorney General’s Chambers (AGC) has dismissed as baseless allegations that it carried out a ‘flawed prosecution’ in the second SRC International Sdn Bhd case involving Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.

In a statement, the AGC reiterated its firm commitment to upholding the rule of law and stated that it would continue to fulfill its responsibilities under the Federal Constitution with integrity, fairness and respect for the judicial process. 

However, the AGC acknowledged the decision by High Court Judge K Muniandy to grant Najib a discharge not amounting to an acquittal (DNAA) on three charges of money laundering involving RM27 million in funds from the company.

“The case was registered in the High Court on Feb 7, 2019, and scheduled for trial on five occasions: June 2020, July to August 2021, March to April 2022, September 2024 and April to May 2025.

“However, all trial dates were postponed due to the Movement Control Order caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, requests by the defence, or applications by the prosecution itself,” the statement read. 

According to the statement, the prosecution’s requests for postponement were due to the ongoing trial of the first SRC case, which proceeded at the High Court, Court of Appeal and Federal Court until its completion on March 31, 2023.

At the same time, the trial proceedings for the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) case had also begun while the first SRC case was still ongoing.

“Both cases involved overlapping material documents required for the second SRC trial.

“As these documents were critical to the second SRC case, the prosecution had no choice but to wait until they were available, which was until the 1MDB trial proceedings were completed.

“It must be emphasised that the material documents are available but are currently being used as evidence in the ongoing 1MDB trial,” the AGC said.

The AGC further stated that the prosecution had requested additional time to gather all relevant material documents to be presented as evidence in the second SRC trial.

“This delay was not intentional but was to ensure the integrity of the documents as evidence in the trial is preserved,” the statement read.

Earlier today, Judge Muniandy, in granting Najib a DNAA on the three charges, stated that the case had been pending for six years since 2019, without any witness testimony being presented, having faced multiple postponements, which indicated that the prosecution was not ready to proceed with the trial.

On Feb 3, 2019, Najib claimed trial to three charges of money laundering by accepting illegal proceeds amounting to RM27 million through his three AmPrivate Banking accounts at AmIslamic Bank Berhad, AmBank Group Building, Jalan Raja Chulan on July 8, 2014.

The former Pekan MP was charged under Section 4 (1) (a) of the Anti-Money Laundering and Anti-Terrorism Financing Act 2001, which is punishable by a maximum fine of RM5 million or imprisonment of up to five years, or both upon conviction.

Najib is currently serving a jail term in Kajang Prison for the misappropriation of RM42 million in the SRC International funds case.

On Sept 2, 2022, he filed a petition for a royal pardon, which led to the Pardons Board halving his jail term from 12 to six years and reducing the fine from RM210 million to RM50 million on Jan 29, 2024. 

-- BERNAMA