Najib on sick leave, 1MDB trial postponed

KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak's 1Malaysia Development Berhad's (1MDB) trial at the High Court here was postponed today as the former premier is on sick leave following an eye surgery last Thursday.

His lead counsel, Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah informed the matter when the court proceeding started at 10.20 am before Judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah, who then gave Najib a one day off and ordered the trial to resume at 9.30 am tomorrow.

Muhammad Shafee also produced Najib's medical certificate to court.

Earlier, the judge asked the lawyer, whether the trial could be conducted tomorrow, to which Muhammad Shafee said Najib's vision was not clear as he could not even sign a cheque.

Judge Sequerah: Perhaps we can try tomorrow to have this case. Give him the day off, tomorrow we can try... Why not we just come here, meet tomorrow as usual, and then if the hematoma is somehow okay, then we can proceed.

Muhammad Shafee: He has this transient inability to have a clear vision, he couldn't even sign cheques.

To which, the judge responded by saying that Najib could just sit in court.

The court was supposed to continue hearing evidence from the 10th prosecution witness Mohd Hazem Abdul Rahman, 49, who was the 1MDB former CEO.

Najib, 67, is facing four charges of using his position to obtain bribes totalling RM2.3 billion from 1MDB funds and 21 charges of money laundering involving the same amount.

-- BERNAMA