KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court heard today that Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak’s criminal case involving SRC International Sdn Bhd bears no direct connection to the company’s ongoing civil suit against the former prime minister.
Najib’s counsel Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah explained that criminal and civil cases operate under fundamentally different standards of proof.
“In criminal cases, the guilt of the accused must be proved beyond a reasonable doubt.”
“In civil cases, however, the rights of the parties or the matter in dispute shall be decided on the balance (preponderance) of probabilities.”
He further elaborated on the relationship between criminal court decisions and civil proceedings during his submission at the hearing of SRC’s USD1.18 billion civil suit against Najib and former CEO Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil.
“If a party to the case relies upon a decision of the criminal court and insists the civil court give credence to the same decision, it is incumbent upon that party to gather further materials in the case which would support the observation and decision of the criminal court.”
Muhammad Shafee emphasised that the civil court retains discretion to evaluate criminal court decisions based on available evidence.
“If any material is available in the case which would corroborate or challenge the decision of the criminal court, the civil court is not barred from relying on it.”
He highlighted procedural differences in handling documents between criminal and civil trials.
“In a criminal trial, any document adverse to the accused is typically challenged or objected to as part of standard procedure.”
“However, in a civil trial situation, I’m speaking for myself, I object to a lot of the documents.”
“If the documents are lacking in their provenance, history and originality, I will object because it may affect the finality of the case.”
The hearing before Judge Datuk Ahmad Fairuz Zainol Abidin will resume tomorrow for further proceedings.
SRC International filed the current legal action in 2021 concerning a RM4 billion loan from Retirement Fund Inc (KWAP).
The loan was disbursed to SRC in two tranches during the second half of 2011 and the first half of 2012.
The company seeks a court declaration that Najib is liable to account for company losses amounting to USD1.18 billion due to alleged breach of duties and trust.
SRC also requests an order for Najib to pay USD120 million in compensation and for Nik Faisal to pay USD2 million.
Najib is currently serving a prison sentence in Kajang Prison for misappropriating RM42 million from SRC International. – Bernama