KUALA LUMPUR: A sum of US$15mil (RM70mil) was transferred out of SRC British Virgin Islands (SRC BVI) to a company called Muraset Ltd, and ended up being funnelled to several people, including the son of a former Mongolian prime minister and a politician in 2011, the High Court has heard.
Offshore asset recovery specialist Angela Barkhouse testified that Muraset, believed to be linked to fugitive businessman Low Taek Jho or Jho Low, received the monies on Dec 27, 2011.
SRC BVI is a subsidiary of SRC International Sdn Bhd.
Based on her investigation, Barkhouse said Battushig Batbold, the son of Mongolia former premier Sükhbaataryn Batbold, received US$40,000 (RM187,000) while Dash Uranbileg, who is believed to be a political figure in Mongolia, received US$2mil (RM9.35mil) from Muraset.
“Also, US$4.5mil (RM21mil) was transferred to the director of Muraset, Cheong Choo Young, a reported proxy of Batbold, while his spouse Kim Hak Seon received US$1.4mil (RM6.5mil).
“The business of Muraset is, however, unknown,” she said.
An expert in financial investigations, Barkhouse is testifying in a lawsuit filed by SRC International against former premier Datuk Seri Najib Razak and former SRC International CEO Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil over allegations of breach of statutory duties.
The Briton was testifying via Zoom before Justice Ahmad Fairuz Zainol Abidin here yesterday.
Barkhouse said initially, it appeared that Muraset received funds from SRC BVI as payment for three million shares in Gobi Coal Energy Limited in Mongolia, where Gobi Coal held rights to two large open cut mines in Mongolia.
“While this appears to be a transaction made in accordance with an investment into the energy and resources sector, the acquisition was conducted in a less than straightforward manner.
“There seems to be little commercial sense in the transfers to Muraset or Gobi Coal. No basis for this payment has been identified and indicates that this was a mechanism to divert funds belonging to SRC International,” she added.
Under new management, SRC International filed the suit in May 2021, alleging that Najib had committed breach of trust, abuse of power, misappropriated the company’s funds and personally benefited from it.
It named Najib along with its former directors Nik Faisal, Datuk Suboh Md Yassin, Datuk Mohammed Azhar Osman Khairuddin, Datuk Che Abdullah @ Rashidi Che Omar, Datuk Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi and Tan Sri Ismee Ismail in May 2021.
However, later, it removed six names from the suit and retained Najib and Nik Faisal as the first and second defendants.
Additionally, Najib has brought the former named SRC International directors as third-party respondents in the suit.
Najib was SRC’s emeritus adviser from May 1, 2012, until March 4, 2019.
The company is seeking damages, interests, costs and a court declaration that Najib is responsible for the company’s losses due to his breach of duties and trust, and is demanding that Najib pay back the US$1.18bil (RM5.52bil) in losses that it has suffered.
It is also seeking US$120mil (RM561.74mil) and US$2mil (RM9.36mil) from Najib and Nik Faisal respectively, on account of fraudulent breach of fiduciary duties and breach of trust.
Najib has been serving a 12-year jail sentence at the Kajang Prison since Aug 23, 2022, after being convicted of misappropriating RM42mil in SRC International funds.
After a petition for a royal pardon on Sept 2, 2022, his jail term was reduced to six years and the fine was reduced to RM50mil from RM210mil. The hearing continues today.
