[ad_1]
Rosmah Mansor, wife of former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, visits the Kuala Lumpur High Court hearing room in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on Thursday, October 4, 2018. Rosmah has been arrested Wednesday by the anti-corruption agency and will be the subject of money laundering. a bribery scandal in the public investment fund 1mdb. (Vincent Thian / Associated Press)
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – The wife of former Malaysian Prime Minister Najjib Razak pleaded not guilty Thursday for laundering the proceeds of an illegal corruption scandal from the 1MDB investment fund five months after the shocking electoral loss of her husband.
Rosmah Mansor, 66, was charged with 17 counts of money laundering and asked to be judged, after smiles and agitated journalists as she was escorted into the court building. Rosmah was arrested Wednesday by the anti-corruption agency after being questioned a third time for alleged theft and money laundering at the cashier.
"This is clearly a first for Malaysia. This testifies to Rosmah's important political role in the administration, which has generated much controversy during Najib's tenure. She was seen as implicated in perceived corruption and her business relationships, as an important gatekeeper, "said Bridget Welsh, a professor of political science at John Cabot University in Rome.
Najib also appeared in court on Thursday to run his own corruption case following the 1MDB scandal. He pleaded not guilty to several counts of money laundering, corruption, abuse of authority and breach of trust by a criminal. He must be tried next year.
Najib, 65, did not speak to reporters, but in a tweet late Wednesday after his wife's arrest, he said he would not stop praying and would trust Allah.
Rosmah, 66, is highly criticized for her opulent lifestyle and her penchant for luxury jewelry and Birkin designer bags that have led her to be compared to the former First Lady of the Philippines, Imelda Marcos, and his extravagant shoe collection.
Police found hundreds of luxury handbags, jewelery and money – worth more than $ 266 million – in house-to-family searches shortly after Najib's election defeat in January. may. 567 handbags, 423 watches and 12,000 jewels, including 1,400 necklaces, 2,200 rings, 2,800 pairs of earrings and 14 tiaras were seized. Najib said these items were mostly gifts to his family.
"More than anyone, Rosmah has represented greed and excess seen from the Najib administration, from rings to hairstyles. The couple acted as if they were above the law and now they must be held accountable. The arrest shows deep resentment and concern over the abuse of power in Malaysia and shows that the new government really wants more responsibility, "said Welsh, an expert from Southeast Asia.
In a biography in 2013, Rosmah said it was common for a prime minister's wife to receive expensive jewelry and gifts. She also claimed to have won millions of ringgits with her own album, which was not made public, but was bought by ministers, fans of her singing talent.
His daughter Nooryana Najwa Najib, echoing Najib's claim that the government was seeking revenge for her political vengeance, criticized the government for attacking the family.
"I can agree to take action against a man who was in power, but putting this woman in harm's way is very wrong," she wrote on Instagram last Wednesday, citing a recent police raid on the house of the Najib's mother as Rosmah's arrest.
Nooryana posted a photo of the young Rosmah who stood like a toddler and promised "we persevere".
Najib created the 1MDB fund when he came to power in 2009, but has accumulated billions of debt and is under investigation in the United States and several other countries. US investigators said Najib's associates stole and laundered $ 4.5 billion from the fund between 2009 and 2014, part of it in Najib's bank account. They say that $ 27.3 million was used to buy a rare diamond necklace for Rosmah.
Public outrage over the scandal finally led to the overthrow of Najib's long-running coalition in the May 9 elections, marking the first change in power since Malaysia's independence from Britain in 1957.
New Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad reopened investigations into the 1MDB suppressed under the Najib regime and banned the couple from leaving the country.
Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, disseminated, rewritten or redistributed.
[ad_2]Source link
