KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk Seri Najib Razak's legal team will summon former Attorney-General Tan Sri Tommy Thomas to testify in the six criminal breach of trust (CBT) charges amounting to RM6.6 billion that he faces together with Tan Sri Irwan Serigar Abdullah.
Najib's lead counsel Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah said this is to support his primary defence argument that the case is a blatant abuse of due process.
"If this is abuse of process, we can maintain a civil proceeding against all those responsible, especially, Thomas for malicious prosecution and abuse of process.
"According to the purported leaked internal memo from Attorney-General's Chambers, the then lead prosecutor Datuk Jamil Ariffin recommending dropping this case.
"The memo was sent to Thomas, saying that this case has got no hope as there was no element of CBT and recommended the charges to be withdrawn in 2019.
"Despite the recommendation, Thomas directed the matter to proceed and that was how my client and Irwan Serigar are now suffering," he said when met after the proceeding today.
Najib and Irwan Serigar were charged in Oct 2018, and had pleaded not guilty to six charges of CBT involving government funds used as payments to the International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC).
They allegedly committed the offences at the Finance Ministry complex in Putrajaya between Dec 21, 2016, and Dec 18, 2017.
The charges, under Section 409 of the Penal Code for CBT by a public servant or agent, carries a maximum 20 years' imprisonment, whipping and a fine upon conviction.