Malaysian police recall overflowing cash, gems in 1MDB raid on Najib-linked condo

Jewellery and cash worth hundreds of millions of ringgit were found in overfilled luggage bags stored in a luxury condominium in Kuala Lumpur during a raid linked to the 1Malaysia Develop­ment Bhd (1MDB) investigation, the High Court heard.The police had found 71 ­luggage bags, a plastic box and more than 200 boxes during the operation at Pavilion Residences on May 17, 2018.Former Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) director Amar Singh Ishar Singh testified that the sheer amount of valuables unveiled made it improbable for the police to itemise them.“Initially, we wanted to count each and every exhibit. But the minute we opened up a few bags, the number of exhibits in each bag was just overwhelming,” Amar Singh said.“When we opened the bags of jewellery, they were filled to the brim. We couldn’t count and ­tabulate these exhibits. There were just too many,” he said.“Imagine if I tabulated the exhibits. I would just be writing one jewellery item, and there would be 12,000 pieces for one chain. There were so many chains.”Amar Singh was testifying in a suit filed by Beirut-based jeweller Global Royalty Trading SAL, who is suing Rosmah Mansor, wife of former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak, for the return of 43 out of the 44 pieces of jewellery or the compensation of 67.5 million ringgit.The witness said the police also saw a bag filled with cash that was not properly bundled up.“It was loosely packed, and the contents just spilled over onto the floor. We immediately had to push back all the items and zip it back again,” he added.A valuation process was conducted, and after it was completed, the exhibits were escorted to be placed in the vault at Bank Negara.Former Malaysian prime minister Najib found guilty in final 1MDB criminal caseFormer Malaysian prime minister Najib found guilty in final 1MDB criminal caseMeanwhile, investigating officer Assistant Commissioner Foo Wei Min testified that 12,009 pieces of jewellery worth a whopping 443 million ringgit were seized in the raid.Further ReadingIn his witness statement, Foo said a valuation exercise was conducted between May 30 and June 25, 2018, with the help of jewellery experts.He said that during investigations, Rosmah’s statement was taken, but she denied knowledge of the seized items.In 2019, the prosecution filed an application under Section 56 of the Anti-Money-Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act 2001 (Amla) to forfeit the seized items.However, the attorney general later ordered the return of 9,554 jewellery items to Rosmah and Najib in April 2022.Another 2,431 items were returned in December 2022, following the High Court’s dismissal of the forfeiture application.This story was first published by The Star