KUALA LUMPUR: There were some awkward moments in court today when Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor was forced to leave the room after she walked in to hear proceedings involving her husband's corruption trial.
This is because she is a potential witness in the case involving her husband, former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.
Rosmah, who was clad in a red baju kurung, had walked in unexpectedly about 9.20am as the proceedings were ongoing.
She took a seat in the first row behind the dock where her husband was seated as he seemed oblivious to her presence.
One of her aide’s later tapped Najib in the shoulder to inform him of his wife’s presence in court.
Najib then turned around and waved to her before turning back to hear his lawyer Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah cross-examine a prosecution witness.
Rosmah listened attentively as the witness – former SRC International Sdn Bhd chairman Tan Sri Ismee Ismail was asked about the going ons in the company which her husband has been accused of plundering to the tune of RM42 million.
As all this was going on, deputy public prosecutor Datuk V. Sithambaram suddenly got up and alerted judge Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali about Rosmah’s presence in the courtroom.
“I have just been alerted that Rosmah is in the courtroom. I would like to inform the court that we have recorded her statement previously and she is one of our potential witnesses.
“We are not being difficult but as a matter of principle, a potential witness should not be here,” he said.
Shafee said he would leave it to the judge to decide on the matter.
Another lawyer Datuk K. Kumaraendran – who is holding a watching brief on behalf of Rosmah, stood up to explain that he would advise his client.
However, as the lawyers were explaining the situation, Rosmah voluntarily got up and left the courtroom.
She had earlier attended a hearing seeking to halt a public prosecutor’s notice asking her to declare all her assets ahead of her money-laundering trial next year.
Rosmah claimed trial, last year to 17 money-laundering charges amounting to RM14 million.
Five of the charges said Rosmah had failed to declare her tax returns from 2014 to 2018.
She was also slapped with three corruption charges related to the solar hybrid project in rural schools in Sarawak.
She was accused of receiving RM1.5 million and RM5 million from the director of Jeepak Holdings as an inducement for the company to obtain the project.
She was also said to have solicited RM187.5 million from the company.
She faces 20 years’ jail and a fine for the offences.