Former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak has had three of his charges at the Sessions Court relating to money laundering transferred to the Kuala Lumpur High Court.
Updated: The Court of Appeal allowed Najib’s application to postpone his trial on the seven charges linked to SRC International. The date of the trial would be fixed pending the outcome of Najib’s challenge against the prosecutor’s withdrawal of his certificate of transfer.
High Court judge Justice Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali today allowed Attorney-General Tommy Thomas’ request to transfer the case from the Sessions Court under Section 417(1)(e) of the Criminal Procedure Code.
“A transfer is expedient for the ends of justice because the cases share interrelated facts, and it would not be in the interest of justice to have separate proceedings in two separate courts of different hierarchies in those circumstances,” he said.
Nazlan refused, however, Thomas’ request for a joint trial with the other SRC International-related charges faced by Najib – the first hearing of which is scheduled for tomorrow.
The defence, led by Muhammad Shafee Abdullah and Havinderjit Singh, had objected to the latter request, arguing that the court only had jurisdiction to allow a transfer and not a joint trial.
In his ruling, Nazlan agreed that he is only allowed to transfer the case under Section 417(2) of the CPC.
“On the application for a joint trial, it would be premature for this court to make a decision, as it would be up to the trial judge,” he added.
Although the case has been transferred with Nazlan’s ruling, the prosecution will still have to register the case before the High Court to see where the three money laundering charges will be heard.
Tomorrow is fixed for the former premier’s seven counts of abuse of power and criminal breach of trust in relation to SRC International unless the Court of Appeal grants the defence a stay on the proceedings later today.
The defence also made an application for the prosecution to furnish the order of witnesses to be called tomorrow, should the trial proceed.
Najib, 65, who is being charged in total with 42 counts of criminal wrongdoing, mostly related to 1MDB, wore a grey suit today and appeared calm as he sat in the dock.