The prosecution in former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) trial has rejected the defence’s narrative that Najib was deceived by fugitive financier Low Taek Jho, or Jho Low, asserting instead that Low functioned as Najib’s trusted proxy in both personal and official dealings.
Deputy public prosecutor Mohamad Mustaffa P. Kunyalam told the High Court that evidence demonstrated a deep and deliberate relationship between Najib and Low, far beyond that of a manipulator and an unsuspecting victim. He noted that Low had orchestrated personal luxuries for the former prime minister — including several private yacht holidays for Najib and his family between 2009 and 2013 in destinations such as Greece, Italy, and the South of France.
Mustaffa also pointed to evidence that Low had played a central role in 1MDB’s operations, including attending key meetings with financial institutions. One notable example was his presence at a 2009 meeting in Najib’s Four Seasons Hotel suite in New York, where Goldman Sachs officials discussed potential investments with 1MDB.
The prosecutor argued that Najib’s reliance on Low was evident in several instances, including banking transactions handled through former AmBank relationship manager Joanna Yu’s BlackBerry Messenger communications, which showed Low facilitating Najib’s personal accounts. Mustaffa questioned why an “outsider” would be so deeply involved in the private financial affairs of the sitting prime minister, concluding that it revealed Najib’s “reliance, sanction, and trust” in Low’s actions.
He further asserted that Najib had effectively entrenched Low within the 1MDB ecosystem, never distancing himself from the businessman even after multiple warnings. Among those who raised red flags, Mustaffa said, was The Edge publisher Tan Sri Tong Kooi Ong, who personally met Najib in March 2015 to alert him about Low’s financial misconduct. Yet, no action was taken against Low until Najib lost power in 2018.
Mustaffa dismissed Najib’s defence of ignorance as implausible, arguing that “the only reasonable inference” was that Low acted as Najib’s conduit and indispensable facilitator in 1MDB’s affairs.
He also recalled the late prosecutor Datuk Seri Gopal Sri Ram’s observation that 1MDB had been operated like a “coffeeshop,” underscoring the chaotic and intentionally mismanaged structure that allowed billions to be siphoned.
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