KUALA LUMPUR – The high court here today has been told that there is no proof the 13 bank transactions involving several accounts of former Goldman Sachs banker Roger Ng and his wife could be linked to the 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) scandal.
Lawyer Datuk Tan Hock Chuan, representing Ng and his wife, Lim Hwee Bin, submitted that there is no evidence in the affidavits of two investigating officers, Foo Wei Min and R. Rajagopal, that shows the flow of funds in his clients’ seven accounts are related to 1MDB.
“The money that flowed to and from the seven accounts belonging to Ng and Lim is their own. There is no prima facie evidence showing that the funds in their accounts are proceeds of illegal activities.
“The transactions in question are between August 7, 2015, and August 17, 2018. Out of the seven bank accounts, four are Ng’s, two are his joint accounts with Lim, and one is Lim’s,” he said in his submission in the government-linked forfeiture suit against the couple and 16 others.
Among the 13 transactions submitted at the hearing today are those involving S$2,656,786.34 (RM8,184,492.20) in sale proceeds of Ng’s house in Singapore on May 19, 2017; RM13,737.50 in company shares on August 17, 2018; RM85,864.21 in payment to the Singapore Inland Revenue Authority on May 21, 2018; and RM170,183.11 in fund transfers from Ng to Lim on August 7, 2015.
Tan also submitted that the burden is now placed on the prosecution to prove, on the balance of probabilities, that the bank accounts belonging to the couple are a subject matter in relation to the commission of an offence under the anti-money laundering act or proceeds from illegal activities.
He then asked the court to dismiss the forfeiture suit against Ng and Lim.
The hearing before justice Mohamed Zaini Mazlan will resume on April 5. – Bernama, April 1, 2021
