This article first appeared in The Edge Malaysia Weekly on July 29, 2019 - August 4, 2019

AT least RM12.38 million in cash was deposited in several transactions into Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s bank accounts at AmBank between June 2014 and March 2015, to ensure that the cheques written by the former prime minister did not bounce.

In her testimony, former AmBank relationship manager Joanna Yu Ging Ping confirmed that RM6.78 million cash was deposited over-the-counter into Najib’s AmBank account ending with the three digits 906. Another RM5.6 million or so was placed into his 880 account in several deposits in January and February 2015.

The two accounts, along with the AmBank account ending 898, were often in overdraft, Yu said, which meant the account balances needed to be supplemented with money from elsewhere to ensure that cheques written on the accounts were approved.

She would often contact former SRC International Sdn Bhd CEO and managing director Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil — the mandate holder for the accounts — or financier on-the-run Low Taek Jho (Jho Low) to deposit cash into the accounts.

“Why did you contact Jho Low when he was not the account holder or mandate holder?” asked deputy public prosecutor (DPP) Datuk V Sithambaram during examination-in-chief.

“He was not the mandate holder but he facilitated the account opening. At one time, he was the contact between the account holder (Najib) and the bank until the mandate to Nik Faisal was given,” Yu replied, noting that Low seemed to be in constant contact with both the account and mandate holder and, therefore, she would contact Low when she could not reach Nik Faisal regarding the overdrawn accounts.

A phone call from Nik Faisal would follow soon after she contacted Low, she added.

Yu said the constant overdrafts of Najib’s accounts and the frequent cash deposits raised some anti-money laundering and anti-terrorism financing (AMLA) red flags, by former AmBank group managing director Ashok Ramamurthy, who took over after Cheah Tek Kuang left the managing director’s post in March 2012.

Cheah had previously facilitated the opening of Najib’s accounts and he remained an executive director of AmBank after resigning as managing director in 2014.

Although Cheah denied having any dealings with Low during his testimony two weeks ago — describing the fugitive businessman as a “liar” who was “never punctual” — Yu seemed to paint a slightly different picture when asked about her perception of the relationship between the two.

“How was [Cheah’s] relationship with Jho Low? How would you describe it?” asked lawyer Harvinderjit Singh.

“From my perspective, I think they were amicable,” said Yu.

She also confirmed that the two were in contact and that Low made a gift of a Samsung Galaxy Note 3 to Cheah. Low also had two units of iPhone 5S, Yu said, which were to be passed to someone in Bank Negara Malaysia. She was also offered a new phone but declined the gift, she said.

Yu told the court that Cheah’s resignation was one of the reasons behind her advising Low to close the AmBank accounts.

“His resignation from the board was also one of the reasons why you kept telling Jho [Low] that he needed to close the accounts, apart from the AMLA issues that Ashok Ramamurthy was also bringing up?” asked the lawyer.

“And the frequent cash deposits and overdrafts, yes,” Yu replied during cross-examination.

Before Najib’s three accounts could be closed in February 2015, Low had to clear the overdrafts of some RM10 million.

Ashok retired from the group in April 2015. A bourse filing by AmBank denied his retirement was linked to 1Malaysia Development Bhd, but that he had decided to return to his family in Australia after spending years away.

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