Fearing Najib, ex-SRC director and wife fled to Bangkok, court told
Published on: Friday, June 21, 2019
By: Bernama
KUALA LUMPUR: A former non-executive director of SRC International Sdn Bhd, Datuk Suboh Md Yassin, told the High Court here Thursday that he and his wife fled to Bangkok, Thailand, because they feared Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, who was the Prime Minister then.
Suboh, 68, who is the 42nd witness to testify in Najib’s trial for allegedly misappropriating SRC funds totalling RM42 million, said he and his wife went to Bangkok after his intention to lodge a report on the SRC issue to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) became known.
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He said he contacted MACC in 2015 to make an appointment to explain the SRC issue, which the commission was investigating.
“Before going to the MACC office, I received a call from a man who introduced himself as a representative from MACC. He told me to not go to the MACC’s office for the appointment and ordered me to leave Malaysia.
“I was afraid with what was happening then and also because Datuk Seri Najib was still in power as the Prime Minister,” he said when reading out his witness statement on the 29th day trial of Najib’s SRC case.
Suboh said he and his wife stayed in Bangkok for about a month, with all the expenses borne by himself.
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While in Bangkok, he said, he met a Thai man who handed him flight tickets to Abu Dhabi for him and his wife.
On arrival in Abu Dhabi, Suboh said they were taken to Rosewood Hotel, where they stayed for about a week before flying back to Bangkok and subsequently, back to Malaysia.
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He said their flight tickets and accommodation were paid for, but he did not know by whom.
“After my return (to Malaysia), I was contacted by (then SRC chief executive officer) Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil, who instructed me to leave the country again to avoid the authorities.
“(But) I decided to stay and assist investigation by the authorities,” he added.
Questioned by deputy public prosecutor Datuk Ishak Mohd Yusoff why he wanted to lodge a report on SRC to MACC, Suboh said it was a hot issue in 2015 and wanted to explain what he knew about the matter.
“But, before I was able to go, I got a call from someone claiming to be from MACC. Datuk, Datuk, no need to come, you just go away,” he said.
Ishak: Do you know who the caller is?
Suboh: I cannot recognise the voice. He introduced himself as someone from MACC.
Ishak: Know his race?
Suboh: He speaks Malay
Questioned why he feared Najib and whether the then Prime Minister had threatened him, Suboh said he received a call from Nik Faisal asking him to flee.
“He (Nik Faisal) told me about SRC involving Najib. He advised me, you go away, he said. So, I was confused and fled to Bangkok.
When asked when did Nik Faisal contact him, Suboh said it was after the May 2018 general election.
Ishak: What was your answer to Nik Faisal?
Suboh: I said I’m not going to flee again.
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