KUALA LUMPUR (March 25): Lim Hwee Bin, the wife of former Goldman Sachs banker Roger Ng Chong Hwa, is expected to take the stand on Monday (March 28).
Defence lawyer Marc Agnifilo informed judge Margo K Brodie this during the March 24 proceedings, according to court transcripts sighted by The Edge.
"Lim Hwee Bin would go as our next witness and that could finish Monday or spill into Tuesday," he told Judge Brodie.
The prosecution rested the case on March 24 with their final witness, Federal Bureau of Investigation agent Ryan Collins who walked through email records — including iCloud accounts — sent and received by Ng, fugitive financier Low Taek Jho or better known as Jho Low, Ng's former superior at Goldman Tim Leissner and a host of others involved.
Judge Brodie also indicated that the trial may come to an end next week, and the jury could start their deliberations.
"We expect it to be completed with all testimonies by the latest Tuesday. It may be Monday, but more likely Tuesday of next week.
"So we're getting close to the end and close to the point where you can start your deliberations," she said.
The prosecution has tried to establish that Lim had used shell company Silken Waters (later renamed Victoria Square) to funnel about US$35.1 million from the first and third 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) bond deals. The beneficial owner of the shell company was her mother Tan Kim Chin.
The defence has said that Ng is a "scapegoat" in the entire case and that the alleged kickbacks were from Lim's business venture with Leissner's ex-wife.
The trial, which began on Feb 14, has seen headline-grabbing details from prosecution star witness Leissner's extramarital affairs, exorbitant kickbacks — from established figures to relatively little-known figures — and an intricate web of funds manoeuvring around the global financing system.
Ng is the only former Goldman banker to go to trial in the multibillion-dollar 1MDB scandal. He is charged for conspiring to launder money and bribe government officials in Malaysia and Abu Dhabi through bond offerings that Goldman handled. Three charges are levelled against him for alleged violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. If found guilty, he faces up to 30 years in prison.
Leissner was charged under similar charges but pleaded guilty in August 2018 and agreed to cooperate. He was ordered to forfeit US$44 million.
Jho Low was indicted alongside Ng by US federal prosecutors in 2018. He has yet to be arrested by Malaysian or American authorities.
His trial is ongoing in the US District Court, Eastern District of New York.