PUTRAJAYA (Jan 6): Former 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) chairman Tan Sri Dr Mohd Irwan Serigar Abdullah, who is former treasury secretary general, will bring in two former 1MDB board members as third parties in a US$6.59 billion suit filed by the strategic development company against him and former 1MDB president Arul Kanda Kandasamy. This follows the Federal Court’s ruling to dismiss their application for leave to reverse an earlier Court of Appeal’s (COA) decision that had allowed Irwan to bring in the two former board members as third parties.
They are Datuk Seri Norazman Ayob and Datuk Kamal Mohd Ali.
On Monday, a three-member Federal Court bench, led by Chief Judge of Sabah and Sarawak (CJSS) Tan Sri Abdul Rahman Sebli, said it would not grant leave for appeal as it was not “fit and proper” for the Federal Court to exercise discretion to grant leave for the appeal under Section 96 of the Courts of Judicature Act.
Norazman and Kamal were fellow 1MDB board members from 2016 and 2018, along with Irwan. The trial is currently ongoing at the High Court before judge Datuk Raja Ahmad Mohzanuddin Shah Raja Mohzan.
The COA had on Nov 6 last year allowed Irwan to bring the duo in as third parties in the 1MDB suit against him. Former 1MDB chief financial officer Azmi Tahir, who was in charge of its financial affairs between 2012 and 2017, was also brought into the suit. However, he did not seek leave to appeal at the Federal Court.
1MDB filed the suit in May 2021
On Sept 6 last year, Raja Ahmad had dismissed Irwan’s application to bring in the third parties in the trial. The High Court found that there was an inordinate delay by Irwan to file the application.
However, the COA had overturned the High Court decision in November, noting that there was no inordinate delay in Irwan taking out the third party proceedings, and that 1MDB’s solicitors had made Irwan wait for documents asked by him pertaining to the trial, and then did not give him the said documents.
1MDB had filed its suit against Irwan and Arul Kanda in May 2021, where it claimed that both Irwan and Arul Kanda were liable for breach of duties and breach of trust, resulting in the company suffering losses amounting to US$1.83 billion in relation to its investment in 1MDB-PetroSaudi Ltd, which was converted into stakes in Brazen Sky Ltd, and then converted into an investment in Bridge Global Fund.
It also alleged that Arul Kanda and Irwan had committed breach of trust and conspiracy by misappropriating US$3.5 billion of 1MDB money and paying it to Aabar Investments PJS Ltd — a shell company pretending to be a subsidiary of the International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC) — and subsequently paying another US$1.265 billion to IPIC in May 2017.
1MDB also claimed that Irwan had conspired with Arul Kanda to cause the fund to implement an employment extension agreement that resulted in it paying RM2.91 million to Arul Kanda.
The trial at the High Court is set to resume on Jan 13, with Arul Kanda poised to take the stand.