PUTRAJAYA: The setting up of SRC International Sdn Bhd had nothing to do with national interest considerations but was instead an intentional, deliberate and calculated plan engineered by Datuk Seri Najib Razak for personal benefit, the Court of Appeal heard today.

"It was nothing but a sham," lead prosecutor Datuk V Sithambaram said, adding SRC was established by the former prime minister for the furtherance of a continuous plot to misappropriate the company's funds for his personal benefit and advantage.

Najib, he said, accomplished this by the transfer of RM42 million belonging to SRC to his own banking accounts.

"He had interest in SRC as a company established to serve his benefits. The amount was unimportant as he knew SRC will supply the funds, any amount he needed at any given time, and not confined to a specific amount at a given time. 

"He received in his personal bank account, RM27 million and RM5 million respectively on Dec 26, 2014 and a further RM10 million on Feb 10, 2015.

"I have never seen a case where someone takes money as and when he needs it," he said, adding SRC was a company which had no actual business and had accomplished nothing since it was set up.

Instead he said the country was now left bearing the burden of repaying loans which the company had taken.

Sithambaram said Najib was involved in all facets of SRC, from its establishment, loan application of RM4 billion, the Government Guarantees (GGs), disbursement of funds, financial control of company funds leading to the money trail into his personal account.

He added that when Najib was asked about the SRC money in his account, the former Umno president had pleaded ignorance.

"When we asked him why he did not return the money after the issue was highlighted all over the world, he said he was waiting for investigations to be completed.

"However, even after that, not a single sen was returned. There is complete silence," he said.

Later, during the hearing, lead judge Datuk Abdul Karim Abdul Jalil asked Sithambaram when SRC actually commenced business.

Sithambaram: All I can say tongue in cheek is they started business once they got the money and started transferring it out. There was no actual business.

Karim: But there is a lot about their business activity. They had their business plan from what I understand. But you are saying nothing was done.

Sithambaram: Yes they had plans to do all kinds of things everywhere...from Indonesia to Mongolia. But there is nothing to show for it. All that talk about investment plans is a sham defence. You obtain a loan for renewable energy but the money is then taken to Switzerland. Their defence cannot stand scrutiny.

At this point, one of Najib's counsel Harvinderjit Singh stood up to object but Sithambaram immediately ticked him off and told the defence lawyer to sit down.

"You sit down...you have been talking all kind of nonsense," he said in a loud, stern voice.

Harvinderjit did not respond but sat down after Sithambaram's rebuke.

Sithambaram then continued by pointing out that SRC had nothing to show after it obtained a RM4 billion loan.

Sithambaram: Najib knows...this whole thing is a sham.

Karim: To camouflage the actual intentions?

Sithambaram: Yes. The evidence is all there. If they had done what they said they wanted to do for Malaysia, I would have been very proud. At the very least there wouldn't have been any more power failures. But from 2014 to 2018 nothing happened.

The senior lawyer, who is acting as a Deputy Public Prosecutor in the case, said this during the second day of the prosecution's submissions in Najib's appeal hearing against his sentence and conviction of abuse of power, criminal breach of trust and money laundering involving RM42 million of SRC funds.

Najib was sentenced to 12 years jail and fined RM210 million by the Kuala Lumpur High Court in July last year after he was found guilty of all seven charges.

The appeal is being heard before a three member bench at the Court of Appeal. The other two judges are Datuk Has Zanah Mehat and Datuk Vazeer Alam Mydin Meera.

The hearing continues.

https://www.nst.com.my/news/crime-courts/2021/04/682475/src-was-sham-set-najibs-personal-atm