KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk Seri Najib Razak has sent a letter to Communication Minister Fahmi Fadzil asking the ministry to remove the documentary 'Man on the Run' from Netflix.
The recently aired documentary tells the story of the 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) financial saga.
Najib's counsel, Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, in a letter said the documentary contained several statements which could be deemed as contempt due to the ongoing 1MDB financial scandal involving the former prime minister at the High Court here.
The senior lawyer also highlights several excerpts from the documentary in the letter to substantiate his contention.
He cited statements from various individuals in the documentary, including former attorney-general Tan Sri Tommy Thomas, former US ambassador to Malaysia John R Malott, Sarawak Report editor Clare Rewcastle-Brown, and Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, among others.
On Jan 8, Shafee, at the outset of Najib's trial, told the presiding judge Datuk Collin Lawrence Sequerah that the show was highly subjudice and contemptuous.
Shafee said Najib had instructed him to file a contempt proceeding against Thomas and file a legal action against Rewcastle-Brown for her statements in the documentary.
The one hour and 38 minute documentary premiered on Netflix last week.
It currently holds second place in the streaming platform's top 10 movies list.
The documentary also includes an interview with Najib before he was sent to Kajang prison following the loss of his final appeal in a corruption case involving SRC International Bhd.
Najib, 70, is facing four charges of using his position to obtain bribes totalling RM2.3 billion from 1MDB funds and 21 charges of money laundering involving the same amount.