Najib: US Justice Department could have asked me about 1MDB before taking ‘unprecedented’ action against incumbent leader in 2016

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 13 — Datuk Seri Najib Razak said the US Department of Justice (DoJ) should have asked him about the allegations against 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) instead of filing a civil suit to recover 1MDB funds in 2016 while he was still a director. prime minister of malaysia.

Testifying in the 1MDB case in the Malaysian courts here, Najib accused the US Department of Justice of making an unprecedented move to file and publicize the civil forfeiture case against 1MDB, which he said had caused the public to prejudge his culpability in the 1MDB matter.

“Yang Arif, I would also like to add that I said this is unprecedented, unprecedented in the sense that the Ministry of Justice has never taken such action against a sitting head of government. They had never done this but in my case they made an exception.

“What they should have done was to contact me and I could respond to them,” Najib told the Supreme Court.

He added that the US could use the Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters Act (Macma) of 2002 and said Malaysia could respond to any allegations involving the US regarding possible wrongdoing in the 1MDB case.

“To date, no charges have been brought against me in the United States, no charges have been brought against me to date. As I told the court before, there was evidence to exonerate me, but the Department of Justice locked it up. “Therefore, I think I am right to say that the Ministry of Justice’s actions are politically motivated,” he claimed.

When asked by lead defense lawyer Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah which US government was in office at the time of the Justice Department’s 1MDB action, Najib claimed: “It was under the Democrat government and we know that Soros had a huge influence on the then Democratic government. . “As we speak, there is a big movement in Washington to overhaul the Justice Department because they believe it is being weaponized for political reasons.”

Previously, Najib described the Department of Justice’s actions in filing the 1MDB forfeiture case as purportedly “erratic” and “deeply troubling”, given his own disclaimer that a civil forfeiture complaint is merely an allegation that money was involved in or obtained from a crime. Such claims cannot be proven until a court rules in favor of the United States.

“However, the way the Department of Justice publicized the civil forfeiture case gave the impression that the allegations were established facts, creating a false narrative that biased the public and led to a premature conclusion of my guilt.

“Even Loretta Lynch labeled it the ‘biggest kleptocracy case ever’ and alluded to my involvement without due process or evidence,” Najib said, referring to then-attorney general Loretta Lynch.

“Yang Arif said, as we all know, perception is everything in politics, the truth is much bigger than the truth.”

He claimed that sensational narratives were used to create a presumption of guilt against him ahead of any court hearings regarding the 1MDB matter.

US Attorney General Lynch on July 20, 2016 announced Filing civil forfeiture complaints in the US to recover more than US$1 billion in assets associated with an international conspiracy to launder 1MDB funds – including US$3.5 billion allegedly stolen from 1MDB. Lynch was the attorney general of the United States from 2015 to 2017.

Najib denies ignoring 1MDB allegations and failing to act

Today Najib responded to claims that his failure to act against then prime minister Low Taek Jho was part of a plot to misappropriate funds from 1MDB.

Najib also responded to claims that his court statement that he did not suspect Low of his alleged illegal actions was “a mere denial” because he had allegedly not taken action on the 1MDB matter at the time.

However, Najib denied taking any action regarding the 1MDB scandal as then prime minister but claimed he was merely being tactful. He was Prime Minister from 2009 to 2018.

“It is incorrect, however, to say that I took no action regarding the alleged mismanagement at 1MDB; I did take action, but not in hasty and hasty ways as others might have done,” he said.

“I was still prime minister at the time and the far-reaching repercussions of a misstep are at the forefront of my mind,” he said, noting that the allegations concerned the sovereign wealth fund of one of Malaysia’s largest Middle East trading partners. From Goldman Sachs, the world’s largest investment bank.

He said “if the matter had not been handled with skill and sensitivity” it would also have called into question the reputation of other Malaysian government-linked companies, rather than just 1MDB.

“So from my perspective and given the above considerations, it would be unfair to accuse me of not taking action when in fact, as prime minister, I have handled the issue very tactfully,” he said, adding that this was important. Ensuring that any action is taken based on “verified evidence and not mere speculation or tabloid news” to avoid serious local and international repercussions.

“I personally don’t think anyone should be convicted without a proper investigation,” he said.

Najib also claimed that he did not ignore or deny the allegations made regarding 1MDB.

Noting that the police started investigating 1MDB in December 2014 and raided 1MDB’s offices until 2015, he said that the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) recorded Low’s statement.

Najib said he had instructed the Cabinet to authorize the auditor general to examine 1MDB’s accounts, with those findings given to Parliament’s bipartisan Public Accounts Committee, and that such actions occurred before the US Department of Justice’s civil forfeiture case.

“If I was inclined to protect anyone or conceal anything, why would I encourage investigations into the matter and allow a bipartisan committee that included my critics to examine the matter? My failure to take action against Jho Low at the time demonstrates that my complicity was unfounded,” he said .

Claiming that none of the 50 prosecution witnesses in the 1MDB case said they had stopped investigations into Low at 1MDB or halted efforts to find him, Najib today asked what the current Malaysian government was doing to find Low or recover the billions of dollars that were looted. 1MDB.

After spending eight days reading 528 pages of written witness statements in English and today reading 147 pages of additional witness statements in English, Najib today chose to answer one of Shafee’s questions in Malay.

Asked to share his thoughts on the alleged injustices he faced based on the claim that the 1MDB case against him was a “politically motivated” prosecution, Najib accused many prosecution witnesses of lying in court to incriminate him and also blamed the prosecution. and researchers of bias.

However, Najib declared that he would not take “revenge” on those who allegedly masterminded the alleged injustice against him and said they would face divine judgment.

In his lengthy reply in Malay, Najib said he too had the right to get justice and questioned why he was denied the opportunity to get justice.

Najib’s 1MDB trial is scheduled to resume on January 6 next year.