Only Jho Low could meet Najib, says ex-1MDB legal officer Jasmine Loo

The former 1MDB general counsel says fugitive financier Low Taek Jho instructed her to wait at the gate of Najib Razak’s private residence on every occasion.

(FMT) – The High Court heard today that former 1MDB general counsel Jasmine Loo never entered the private residence of Najib Razak when the then prime minister signed off on investment documents linked to the company.

Loo said she would be instructed by fugitive financier Low Taek Jho, or Jho Low, to wait for him at the gate to Najib’s residence.

She said there were occasions when Low would already be waiting for her at the gate when she arrived.

“On one occasion, Low came out from Najib’s home in Langgak Duta and I passed the documents over to him. I have never gone into Najib’s house,” she said during examination-in-chief by deputy public prosecutor Deepa Nair Thevaharan.

The 50th prosecution witness testified yesterday that she worked for 1MDB between 2011 and November 2013.

She said her duties included preparing legal documents relating to the company’s overseas investment. She also said Low always gave the impression he was close to Najib.

In her testimony today, Loo said she would put the prepared documents into a folder which she would hand over to Low.

Low would later arrange for the documents containing Najib’s signature to be sent back to her, she said.

“He would send text messages to me (asking for me) to collect the documents (from third parties) and submit them to 1MDB officers for further action,” she said.

She said 1MDB investment decisions used an abnormal “top-down” approach as all decisions were made by Najib in his capacity as the finance minister and chairman of the company’s board of advisers.

This was because 1MDB is a government-linked company parked under the Minister of Finance Incorporated, where the ministry holds the golden share, she said.

Loo said the board of directors would agree to and follow all decisions taken by Najib.

She said this was due to a clause in the 1MDB constitution which states that Najib’s permission must be obtained for major investments that have financial implications for the government.

Najib is facing 25 charges for abuse of power and money laundering over alleged 1MDB funds amounting to RM2.28 billion deposited into his AmBank accounts between February 2011 and December 2014.

The hearing before Justice Collin Lawrence Sequerah continues.