KUALA LUMPUR – Former Goldman Sachs banker Tim Leissner’s controversial and incriminating testimony in the ongoing 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) was placed under heavy scrutiny, following the cross-examination by Roger Ng’s defence team.
In grilling Leissner at the Brooklyn district court, counsel Marc Agnifilo appeared to have raised multiple doubts over the US government’s star witness’ testimony involving his allegations and recount of incidents.
Leissner had previously described how, during the first of two meetings in London back in 2012, fugitive businessman Low Taek Jho had drawn a chart of Malaysian and Abu Dhabi officials who would be bribed as part of a plan to drain billions of dollars from 1MDB.
Agnifilo pointed out, however, that Leissner had not mentioned such a chart when he had initially spoken to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in 2018, suggesting that the 50-year-old had only mentioned the chart to FBI agents last year.
Bloomberg quoted Leissner as saying in response: “I don’t remember when I first brought up the chart. The chart existed. When I brought it up, I don’t know.”
Another testimony Agnifilo had scrutinised was regarding a meeting in Abu Dhabi in 2012, where Leissner claims to have hand-delivered a letter from former Malaysian prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak to United Arab Emirates deputy prime minister Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed al Nahyan.
According to Leissner, Low had included Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund International Petroleum Investment Company’s chairman in his chart of officials to bribe.
“The Sheikh would not get out of bed for less than US$100 million (RM419.18 million),” Bloomberg quoted Leissner as saying.
However, when questioned by Agnifilo, Leissner was unable to recall details of Sheikh Mansour’s home or who was in attendance when the letter was delivered.
“This is the first time you’ve ever been given a letter to pass from one world leader to a second world leader, and you don’t remember?” the defence lawyer questioned.
Besides that, another London meeting, in which Leissner testified that he and Ng had discussed getting lucrative multi-million-dollar kickbacks from Low, was targeted by Agnifilo.
Questioning the witness about travel records showing Leissner flying to Hong Kong on the same night, the defence lawyer inquired as to how the man was able to go for dinner, walk back to his hotel and then take an international flight at 8.45pm.
In response, Leissner simply stood by his account of events, saying: “The events were as I described them.”
Agnifilo began his cross-examination of Leissner on Tuesday by questioning him about the many lies entangled in his private life, particularly regarding his former wives and mistresses.
Before the jury arrived yesterday morning, the prosecution had complained to the judge that the defence’s line of questioning was tantamount to “harassing” their witness.
“He has not denied having affairs and he will not deny having affairs, but the defence should be precluded from asking questions that go to the sordid details of his affairs,” Bloomberg quoted assistant US attorney Drew Rolle as saying to US district judge Margo Brodie before the jury arrived.
Standing by his line of questioning, Agnifilo responded that querying Leissner about his love life was fair game, as it was meant to bring into question Leissner’s credibility.
“It’s not so much that he was having an affair, but everything he does is all a lie.
“He lies to both people at the same time, and he lies to get what he wants. So far, he’s minimised the lying.
“All we’ve done is bring out the lies. This is not about lying, this is about credibility,” he said.
Last week, Leissner had confessed to cheating, lying, and scheming – a tactic typically used to get ahead of the coming cross-examination by the defence.
He said he spent millions on a US$50 million (RM209.6 million) boat, bought part of the Inter Milan team, a Manhattan apartment, down payment for a Los Angeles house with partner Kimora Lee Simmons, and investments in a media company All Def Digital Inc, and an energy drinks maker Celsius Holdings Inc.
Besides that, Leissner had previously revealed that he was married to two women simultaneously – one being Simmons and the other being Hong Kong businesswoman Judy Chan.
He said to marry Simmons, he provided a fake divorce decree in 2014, a similar modus operandi he used when he wanted to marry Chan in 2000.
Leissner had revealed to the US court on February 23 his alleged affair with former Astro Malaysia Holdings Bhd CEO Datuk Rohana Rozhan, and how she had allegedly blackmailed him for a US$10 million home in London.
Bloomberg reported that the pair had a relationship between 2003 to 2013, when Leissner called it off so he could be with Simmons. – The Vibes, March 3, 2022
