FMT
7/5/2021
KUALA LUMPUR: Rosmah Mansor’s lawyer told the High Court here that it was not “unusual” for the former prime minister’s wife to receive gifts such as designer handbags from individuals.
Contesting the government’s bid to forfeit items seized from Rosmah, her lawyer, Iskandar Syah Ibrahim, said the handbags were presents that she had received previously.
“In her (Rosmah) affidavit, she said that she received gifts from people she knew and did not know, as well as her in-laws.
“The Bukit Aman investigating officer (Foo Wei Min) also stated that police investigations found that a majority of the handbags seized on May 17, 2018 were ‘gifts’,” he said.
Rosmah is objecting against the government’s application to forfeit 263 handbags, which she claimed she and her daughter, Nooryana Najwa Najib, owned.
The government is also seeking to forfeit hundreds of items seized from Najib Razak and 17 individuals and companies. They include handbags, cash in different currencies, watches, shoes and 27 vehicles.
Iskandar reiterated during the hearing today that 1MDB funds were never used to buy Rosmah’s handbags.
“The prosecution’s case focuses on money originating from an Ambank account, and the subsequent money trail showed they were dispersed to various individuals and organisations.
“For the Hermes handbags, the prosecution failed to prove where they were bought from. They are not normal handbags that you can buy in normal shopping malls,” he said.
On the the government’s bid to forfeit 27 pairs of shoes from Nooryana, Iskandar told the court that Nooryana received income when she worked in different countries between 2011 and 2014.
“The prosecution argued that the burden lies on her to prove she is capable of buying these shoes.
“We say that she can afford to buy these shoes, and she also received designer handbags as wedding presents from her husband (Daniyar Kessikbayez) and in-laws,” he said.
Co-counsel Azamuddin Aziz, representing Rosmah’s son, Nor Ashman Najib, told the court that there was no money trail to show that 1MDB funds flowed into his account or that the money was spent to buy watches for him.
“The prosecution contended that he cannot afford to buy these watches because he does not receive any income.
“In his affidavit, he affirmed that he received some watches from his father (Najib) and a friend,” he said.
High Court judge Mohamed Zaini Mazlan fixed June 18 for deputy public prosecutor Mohd Saifuddin Hashim Musaimi to reply to the respondents.
The court previously heard arguments from lawyers representing Najib, as well as former banker Ng Chong Hwa and Low Taek Jho’s mother, Goh Gaik Ewe, who are also named in the forfeiture application.
