For and against having an expert examine and determine the authenticity of Najib’s signatures on key SRC documents.
9.04am: Former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak enters the Kuala Lumpur High Court and takes a seat at the front row of the public gallery.
Also seen in court are members of the prosecution and Najib’s defence teams.
9.10am: Attorney-General Tommy Thomas enters the High Court and greets other members of the prosecution team.
9.44am: Najib enters the dock as proceedings begin.
9.46am: Defence counsel Harvinderjit Singh begins submission on Najib’s application for an Australian handwriting expert to be allowed to examine and determine the authenticity of Najib’s signatures on key SRC International documents.
These documents were relied on by the prosecution to prove the prima facie case against Najib over seven charges of abuse of power, criminal breach of trust and money laundering of RM42 million of funds from SRC.
10.15am: In his submission, Harvinderjit tells the court that they are disputing the authenticity of 13 documents tendered by the prosecution.
He says that the documents’ authenticity had not been conclusively determined, and thus why the defence wanted to call an expert witness to examine them and testify in court.
Harvinderjit also took a jab on the prosecution, saying that the burden to prove the authenticity was supposed to be on the latter.
“They are the one who produced these documents,” he says.
The counsel then refutes an earlier claim by the prosecution that Najib’s defence team was trying to pull a “trial by ambush” by wanting to call the expert at the defence stage.
According to Harvinderjit, they have been disputing Najib’s signatures on the documents since the prosecution stage of the case.
10.35am: Harvinderjit argues that the court needs to allow a Dr Steven to examine the 13 disputed documents because the Australian expert only examined scanned copies of the documents given to him by the defence in December last year.
“Dr Steven from Australia came back to us with a preliminary report. He said there is limitation as he could not determine if the documents have been manipulated or not until he sees the primary documents and until he examines the documents.
11.18am: Harvinderjit wraps-up his submission.
Court goes for a short break.
11.45am: Proceedings resume with DPP V Sithambaram submitting why the High Court should not allow Najib’s application for an Australian handwriting expert to examine key SRC documents.
11.50am: Najib’s defence team did not oppose the admission of key SRC documents with his disputed signatures in the early stage of trial, the High Court hears.
The DPP says the application was done in mala fide (bad faith) and a mere afterthought as it marks a “gostan” (U-turn) on their initial stance of allowing the admission of the documentary exhibits as evidence during the prosecution stage of trial last year.
“This application is an attempt to ask the court to unmark the documents which are already prosecution or defence exhibits, asking the court to renew its decision on flimsy and unsubstantiated grounds advanced by the defence. It is an afterthought,” Sithambaram submits.
12.15pm: Sithambaram says the attempt by the defence to call an expert witness at this juncture was only a “tactical manoeuvre”, claiming that they could have done it earlier during prosecution case.
“Since it is clear before and during the trial they were convinced of forgery, all the drama that they suspected forgery during trial was tactical manoeuvre to put prosecution at disadvantage.
“At stage where the prosecution has already closed its case,” Sithambaram submits.
“They chose to ignore it and now choose to open it,” he adds.
The government attorney also takes a swipe at the defence’s argument that the prosecution had failed to get an expert witness to examine the documents when they were making their case against Najib.
Sithambaram argues that they didn’t have to as the prosecution was relying on direct evidence in tendering the documents.
12.57pm: Judge Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali adjourns proceedings for the day to 9am tomorrow.
Earlier reports:
Jan 9, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 69
Jan 8, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 68
Jan 7, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 67
Jan 6, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 66
Jan 6, Prosecution’s Application to Impeach Najib Dismissed, Judge Ruled No Contradictions Given
Dec 20, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 65
Dec 18, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 64
Dec 18, Najib’s Defence Like Infamous VK Lingam’s Looks Like Me, Sounds Like Me, but Not Me
Dec 12, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 63
Dec 10, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 62
Dec 10, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 61
Dec 9, RM500K Birthday Watch for Rosmah, RM3.3M Jewellery Gift for Ex-Qatar PM’s Wife
Dec 5, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 60
Dec 3, Najb’s SRC Trial: Day 59
Dec 3, Najib’s Day in Court
Aug 27, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 58
Aug 23, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 57
Aug 22, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 56
Aug 20, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 55
Aug 19, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 54
Aug 14, SRC Trial Postponed as Najib Down with Sore Eyes
Aug 13, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 52
Aug 9, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 51
Aug 7, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 50
Aug 6, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 49
Aug 5, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 48
Aug 1, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 47
July 31, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 46
July 29, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 45
July 25, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 44
July 24, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 43 Vacated
July 23, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 42
July 22, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 41
July 18, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 40
July 17, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 39
July 16, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 38
July 15, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 37
July 11, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 36
July 10, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 35
July 9, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 34
July 8, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 33
July 3, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 32
July 3, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 31
July 1, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 30
June 20, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 29
June 19, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 28
June 18, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 27
June 17, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 26
June 14, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 25
June 13, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 24
June 12, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 23
June 11, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 22
June 10, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 21
May 28, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 20
May 27, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 19
May 15, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 18
May 14, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 17
May 9, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 16
May 8, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 15
May 7, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 14
May 7, Najib Fails in Second Bid to Remove Sri Ram as 1MDB Lead Prosecutor
May 7, Najib Signed Guarantee Letter for RM2B KWAP Loan to SRC, KWAP Rules Breached
May 6, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 13
May 2, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 12
May 2, RM1M Golden Handshake in Final Month as PM for Najib
Apr 30, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 11
Apr 29, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day 10
Apr 29, Court Throws Out Najib’s Application to Strike Out 7 SRC Charges, Trial to Go On
Apr 25, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day Nine
Apr 24, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day Eight
Apr 24, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day Seven
Apr 22, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day Six
Apr 18, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day Five
Apr 17, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day Four
Apr 16, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day Three
Apr 15, Najib’s SRC Trial: Day Two
Apr 3, Najib Trial: Day One