KUALA LUMPUR – Former 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) general counsel Jasmine Loo Ai Swan told the high court here today that she has yet to file a police report over the threats she received from fugitive businessman Jho Low during the years she spent being on the run since 2018.
Loo, 50, was replying to questions from former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s counsel, Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah on why she did not file any police report when she received the threats from Jho Low while she was in Thailand.
“As I said before, I felt I was under threat and I was being monitored closely on any move that I made.
“I didn’t want to endanger myself by making any moves contrary to whatever Jho Low instructed, which was to stay put,” she testified in the trial faced by Najib involving RM2.3 billion belonging to 1MDB.
Shafee then questioned the 50th prosecution witness if she had lodged a police report following her return to Malaysia.
To this, Loo said: “Not yet, I will have to take advice (from my legal counsel)”.
Earlier, Loo admitted that Jho Low was a good friend and she had received expensive gifts from him, including a Hermes handbag and a Richard Mille watch, which had since been surrendered to the government.
Shafee then responded that the witness had always participated with Jho Low in many activities, such as going for holidays in Las Vegas in the United States, gambling, watching a quarter-final game at the 2014 World Cup in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and partying with celebrities, including Adriana Lima and Leonardo Di Caprio, all in which were fully sponsored by the businessman.
Loo agreed to the suggestion and said those were all normal things to do between close friends.
“He’s (Jho Low) a very soft-spoken person so he doesn’t really use harsh words… until 2015, 2016, that was when he began to seem a little bit more irritated,” she said.
Shafee suggested to the witness that Jho Low became an irritable person in 2015 due to the 1MDB scandal being revealed to the public, to which Loo agreed.
Najib, 70, faces four charges of using his position (as prime minister) to obtain bribes totalling RM2.3 billion from 1MDB funds and 21 charges of money laundering involving the same amount.
The trial before justice Datuk Collin Lawrence Sequerah continues on March 14. – February 28, 2024