Kuala Lumpur: Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak told the High Court here today that he did not inquire as to the authenticity of the donation letters from Saudi Arabia as he assumed the letters were genuine. The former premier said he received the letters from his (then) principal private secretary Datuk Azlin Alias (now deceased), thus assumed the letters were genuine and did not inquire as to their authenticity.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, Najib, 71, made this statement when re-examined by his lawyer Wan Azwan Aiman Wan Fakhruddin at the trial of his case for misappropriation of RM2.3 billion of 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) funds. Wan Azwan Aiman questioned Najib on the prosecution’s assertion that the funds did not originate from King Abdullah, as Najib never wrote a letter to thank the late Saudi king.

Najib responded by explaining that expressing gratitude can be done in various forms, not necessarily through a letter. He believed it was more courteous to thank King Abdullah personally, rather than through a written note, which could be intercepted and compromise secrecy.

Today, Najib reiterated his stance of having no direct interest in 1MDB, maintaining that the money in question came from the late King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia. On October 30 of the previous year, Judge Datuk Collin Lawrence Sequerah had ordered Najib to enter his defence, ruling that the prosecution presented a prima facie case.

Najib currently faces 25 charges, including four charges of abusing his position to acquire RM2.3 billion from 1MDB as bribes and 21 charges of money laundering involving the same amount. The hearing is set to continue tomorrow.