Court sets new hearing dates starting April 5 for Najib's appeal against SRC conviction

PUTRAJAYA: The Court of Appeal has set new dates, starting April 5, to hear former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak's appeal against his conviction and jail sentence for misappropriation of RM42 million in SRC International Sdn Bhd funds.

The 12-day hearing dates beginning Feb 15 this year, which were fixed on Oct 1, last year, to hear the matter had been vacated.

One of Najib's lawyer, Muhammad Farhan Muhammad Shafee, in a whatsapp text message to Bernama, said the new hearing dates fixed by the court to hear the appeal are in April, from 5 to 8, 12 to 15 and 19 to 22.

Meanwhile, both the defence and prosecution would receive the amended appeal record on Feb 8 and they are to file their respective submissions by March 1 and the reply by March 19, according to sources.

The next case management for the appeal is fixed on Feb 22.

The appeal was fixed for case management yesterday before Court of Appeal’s deputy registrars Darmafikri Abu Adam and N. Kanageswari ,and continued today to fix the hearing dates and filing of submissions.

Present at the case management proceedings were Najib's lawyers Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah and Nur Syahirah Hanapiah, while deputy public prosecutor Mohd Ashrof Adrin Kamarul appeared for the prosecution.

The Pekan MP has submitted 307 grounds in his petition of appeal on why he should be freed of the charges.

The Kuala Lumpur High Court on July 28, last year, sentenced Najib to 12 years’ jail and fined RM210 million after finding him guilty on seven charges of criminal breach of trust (CBT), money laundering and abuse of position, involving RM42 million of SRC funds.

High Court judge Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali sentenced Najib to 10 years’ jail on each of the three counts of CBT and each of the three counts of money laundering and 12 years' jail and a RM210 million fine, in default five years' jail, in the case of abuse of position.

However, he will only serve 12 years in jail as the judge ordered all the jail sentences to run concurrently.

Najib is currently out on bail of RM2 million in two sureties pending appeal.

-- BERNAMA