Malaysia court slams leak of alleged verdict of ex-PM Najib Razak's wife Rosmah Mansor
The Hindu
The High Court is due to deliver its verdict Thursday in Rosmah Mansor's graft trial
Malaysia's top court on August 27, 2022 condemned as a smear attempt the leaking of an alleged guilty verdict against the wife of former Prime Minister Najib Razak days after he was imprisoned for graft linked to the looted 1MDB state fund.
The High Court is due to deliver its verdict Thursday in Rosmah Mansor's graft trial over a 1.25-billion-ringgit ($279-million) solar energy project. Mr. Najib began a 12-year prison term Tuesday after losing his final appeal in one of the five graft cases against him involving 1MDB.
The Malaysia Today website, run by a Malaysian blogger now based in England, posted a 71-page document it described as containing a guilty judgment against Rosmah. The report late Friday alleged the verdict was written by unknown people and not by the High Court judge handling Rosmah's case.
The Chief Registrar office of the Federal Court, Malaysia's top court, condemned the website's action as “a deliberate act" to smear the court's reputation. It said it has lodged a complaint with police and vowed the court would not be cowed by attempts to threaten the administration of justice.
“This office stresses that the judiciary will not be harassed by illegal and irresponsible acts meant to tarnish the integrity of the country's judicial system,” the statement said.
Police said the leaked document was an initial draft prepared by the Kuala Lumpur High Court's research unit.
“The document is a research work on the ongoing trial and is the view of the research unit for the judge's reference," said a police statement. According to the court, the document will be amended based on research findings and further studies and “is not a judgment," it said.
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