DEBUNKED

Rosmah’s Bribe Trial: Day 11

March 9, 2020

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Court hears that Rosmah’s former aide Rizal is under witness protection.

9.50am: The accused Rosmah Mansor enters the dock.

DPP Ahmad Akram Gharib and other DPPs, as well as defence counsels Azrul Zulkifli Stork, Akberdin Abdul Kader, and Jagjit Singh are also seen in the court.

Businessperson Razak Othman, the eighth prosecution witness who is set to be cross-examined by the defence, is sitting in the witness stand.

Razak is a business partner to Jepak Holding managing director Saidi Abang Samsudin.

10.04am: High Court judge Mohamed Zaini Mazlan enters the court and proceedings begin.

10.24am: Razak says he didn’t know the amount that Saidi withdrew from Maybank as he didn’t see the cheque although he accompanied Saidi to the bank.

Defence counsel Akberdin Abdul Kader suggests that Razak did not know the actual amount put in the two bags as claimed in his witness statement. The eighth prosecution witness had stated that he put RM2.5 million into each of the two bags.

Akberdin: You did not see the cheque?

Razak: No.

Akberdin: Do you agree that you did not know the amount that Saidi withdrew on the day because you did not see the cheque and did not deal with the bank officer?

Razak: Yes.

10.46am: Razak tells the court he did not know what had happened in the office after he left the two bags containing RM2.5 million each in the room.

He says this under cross-examination from Akberdin.

Akberdin: Within the 15-minute timeframe, you did not know what happened? Whether the contents in the bank were withdrawn in full or partially, as you did not enter the room, correct?

Razak: Correct.

10.47am: Razak answers “yes” during cross-examination by Akberdin when asked if the former wouldn’t know if some or all of the money was removed from the bags.

Akberdin: In 15 minutes time (during which Razak waited outside of the room), you did not know what happened?

Razak: Yes.

Akberdin: Whether some or all of the content in the bags was removed?

Razak: Yes.

Akberdin: If the money is taken out by some or all and replaced with other items, you wouldn’t know, true?

Razak: Yes.

11.02am: Razak leaves the witness stand after Akberdin completes his cross-examination.

The ninth prosecution witness Ahmed Farriq Zainul Abidin, a businessperson, enters the witness stand.

11.09am: Ahmed Farriq says that he first met Rizal Mansor in 2014 at a programme called Selawat Perdana in Putrajaya.

He says they became friends and Rizal had invited him to form a foundation called Yayasan Perdana Ummah where they held numerous programmes on religion, sports, and assistance.

Ahmed Farriq also tells DPP Mohd Farizul Hassan Bakri that when he first met Rizal, he already knew that Rizal held a position as a special officer to Najib and a special aide to Rosmah.

11.11am: The prosecution asks Ahmed Farriq if he can recognise Rosmah and her aide Rizal. Ahmed Farriq replies that he is able to do so.

Rizal then appeared via an entrance reserved for court workers.

DPP Ahmad Akram tells the court that Rizal was under witness protection, but he did not know why Rizal appeared from that entrance.

11.18am: The court hears from Ahmed Farriq that at Pavilion Tower, he saw two or three unknown men alight from a car and two of them carried two black bags. They then entered the building’s lift.

He testifies that Rizal asked him to wait in the lobby before going up the lift.

“About 20 minutes later, Rizal came down and told me that there’s a problem and that he needed to send the two bags to Sri Perdana,” he says.

He adds that when Rizal’s car arrived at the lobby, the two men put the two bags in the bonnet and left the area.

Ahmed Farriq also says that throughout the journey to Sri Perdana, they were joined by a man whom Rizal said to be known as “Evo”, who is a police officer.

11.20am: Ahmed Farriq testifies that he had accompanied Rizal Mansor from Pavilion Tower to Seri Perdana in a car containing two bags.

“While on the way, I didn’t know that the bags contained money. Rizal said he wanted to pass ‘items’ to ‘ma’am’,” he reads from his witness statement.

Ahmed Farriq says “ma’am” refers to Rosmah.

The witness says he never asked about what’s in the bag as he is aware that Rizal is a secretive person, especially when it comes to work.

Earlier, before going to Pavilion Tower, he says Rizal had asked him to accompany Rizal for a coffee at Pavilion mall.

However, en route to Sri Perdana later, Rizal revealed to him that there’s money in the bags, but he didn’t specify the amount.

Ahmed Farriq says at the cafe, Rizal had told him that he’s waiting for “goods” to be given to a person called Lawrence, but he didn’t ask what “goods” Rizal referred as he understood that Rizal is full of secrecy.

He says he had met this Lawrence before, and he knows that Lawrence works for one Desmond Lim.

11.35pm: Ahmed Farriq testifies that he saw two butlers picked up the two bags from Rizal’s car when they arrived at Sri Perdana.

He says he clearly saw the butlers carrying the bags into the residence.

“Rizal told me that he’s going to meet ‘ma’am’ and asked me to wait in the car…later, he came out and said ‘it’s settled’,” he testifies.

Ahmed Farriq says he only knew a little about the hybrid solar project as he had accompanied Rizal to meet Saidi and Rayyan before.

He says he didn’t want to know about the project although Rizal had attempted to talk about it with him several times.

11.37am: During cross-examination by defence counsel Azrul Zulkifli, Ahmed Farriq testifies that he never saw what was in the bags.

Azrul: You never saw the money inside the bag?

Ahmed: That’s right.

Subsequently, lead prosecutor Gopal Sri Ram asked Ahmed Farriq if there’s any other person whom Rizal referred to as “ma’am”, in which the latter replied: “Not that I know.”

11.39am: Justice Zaini allows proceedings to adjourn for a short break.

12.07pm: Tenth witness, former Education Ministry asset acquisition and management department secretary Kamarudin Abdullah, enters the witness stand.

In a witness statement, Kamarudin testifies that Former Education Ministry secretary-general Madinah Mohamad has instructed him to write a letter to the chief secretary of the Treasury to apply for Jepak Holdings to take over the maintenance and operation of diesel gen-sets in rural Sarawak schools.

12.20pm: Kamarudin testifies that he had produced a second letter of intent dated Nov 4, 2016, to Jepak Holdings as the company did not attached to its proposal the required financial and technical details when replying to the first letter of intent.

12.29pm: Kamarudin testifies that he received a call from the then education minister Mahdzir Khalid to amend the letter of award (LOA) to Jepak Holdings to remove “Clause 11”.

Clause 11 refers to a right to the government to terminate the contract anytime in between.

1.01pm: Judge Zaini allows proceedings to adjourn for the day.

The trial will resume tomorrow.

Earlier reports:

Mar 9, Rosmah’s Ex-Aide Rizal Mansor Now in Witness Protection

Feb 20, Rosmah’s Bribe Trial: Day Ten

Feb 20, Witness Tells Rosmah’s Trial Jepak MD Gave RM5 Million to “RM”

Feb 19, Rosmah’s Bribe Trial: Day Nine

Feb 18, Rosmah’s Bribe Trial: Day Eight

Feb 18, Rosmah’s Lawyer Tears into Madinah’s Testimony

Feb 17, Rosmah’s Bribe Trial: Day Seven

Feb 17, Ex-Education Ministry Sec-Gen: Business Partners Fought over RM1.2B Solar Project