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Incarcerated former premier Datuk Seri Najib Razak still harbour hopes of roping in the King’s Counsel Jonathan Laidlaw service to represent him should a rehearing of his appeal for embezzling RM42 million of the SRC International Sdn Bhd case is allowed.
According to his long-time lawyer Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, Laidlaw’s expertise and experience handling fraud and corruption cases would be crucial for Najib’s defence in arguing their case.
“Laidlaw’s expertise in high-profile fraud and corruption cases would make him a valuable addition to Najib’s defence team.
“We are hoping that the review would either lead to Najib being completely acquitted of his sentence, or at the very least, be granted a rehearing with new judges,” Shafee was quoted as saying by The Star.
Shafee added that he was confident that Najib’s appeal review would be held sometime between 21 and 26 October.
In July, Laidlaw sought to be admitted before the court on an ad hoc basis so that he could argue Najib’s SRC International appeal, however, the High Court denied his bid as he did not satisfy the requirements for ad hoc admission under the Legal Profession Act.
Najib is currently serving his prison sentence after the Federal Court on 23 August upheld the Kuala Lumpur High Court’s ruling to sentence him to 12 years in jail and a fine of RM210mil.
The ruling was made after he was found guilty of abuse of power, criminal breach of trust and money laundering of over RM42 million in SRC International funds in his accounts.
He, however, had applied for a royal pardon and a judicial review of the Federal Court decision to reaffirm his jail sentence.
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