INSPECTOR-General of Police (IGP) Tan Sri Razarudin Husain has declined to testify in the trial of former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak over the misappropriation of 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) funds.
Najib's defence had earlier sought to subpoena the IGP to testify.
Home Ministry legal adviser Muhammad Ilmami Ahmad confirmed that police received the subpoena on April 14, but it did not state the reason Razarudin was being called as a defence witness.
Razarudin is also challenging the subpoena, reported The New Straits Times.
Ilmami has requested the court to give him more time to file a formal application to set aside the subpoena order.
"We were not informed why the IGP is being called. Therefore, we request time to file an application to contest the subpoena," he said before presiding judge Datuk Collin Lawrence Sequerah today.
Najib's lawyer, Wan Azwan Aiman Wan Fakhruddin, told the court that the defence wanted Razarudin to clarify remarks he had made regarding rogue banker Roger Ng Chong Hwa, who is currently under the witness protection programme.
The defence also wanted to seek updates from Razarudin on three arrest warrants issued for former 1MDB general counsel Jasmine Loo Ai Swan.
Razarudin had in October 2023 said that Ng, a former Goldman Sachs banker, was repatriated to Malaysia to assist in investigations into the 1MDB scandal.
It was revealed during the trial that both Ng and Loo played a vital role in assisting fugitive businessman Low Taek Jho, or Jho Low, in siphoning billions from the sovereign wealth fund.
Following the fall of the Barisan Nasional-led federal government in the 2018 general election, both Ng and Loo fled the country.
However, Loo decided to return and surrender to the police in July 2023, while Ng faced corruption charges in the United States for his role in conspiring to violate an anti-corruption law and money laundering.
Ng was sentenced to 10 years in prison by the United States Federal Court in Brooklyn, New York, after being convicted of helping to embezzle billions of dollars from 1MDB funds.
Chief judge Margo Brodie ordered Ng to be handed over to US authorities for his return to Malaysian custody.
According to a letter from the US Department of Justice to Brodie, once investigations in Malaysia conclude, Ng is required to return to the US to serve his sentence.
Meanwhile, the court reminded all parties not to further delay the trial — now in its seventh year — under the pretext of tracking down witnesses.
The judge also fixed May 5 to hear the Home Ministry's application to strike out the subpoena against Razarudin.
Najib faces four charges of using his position to obtain RM2.3 billion in bribes from 1MDB and 21 charges of money laundering involving the same amount.
The trial continues. - April 16, 2025
