KUALA LUMPUR: A financial investigations expert told the High Court that she believed that Gobi Coal & Energy Limited (GCE) paid US$13.98 million to two entities, one allegedly linked to fugitive Low Taek Jho, as "kickbacks" for putting in a US$91 million investment into the company.
Angela Barkhouse, a British offshore recovery asset specialist, said she came to the conclusion given the brief period between the payments were made.
"I note the timing of the transactions from GCE to Blackstone and Globalink, being so shortly after the payment from Aabar-SRC to GCE.
"And (I) have concluded that these payments are likely to be 'kickbacks' for the US$91 million investment into GCE," she said in her witness statement in the SRC International suit against former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.
Barkhouse was referring to Blackstone Asia Real Estate Partners Ltd,reportedly a shell company set up by Low.
She said Globalink Aviation Limited was a British Virgin Islands (BVI) incorporated company but she did not know who the beneficial owner was.
Aabar-SRC, a company incorporated in BVI on Oct 25,2011, came about after SRC BVI entered into a joint venture with Aabar UAE.
GCE is a BVI incorporated company which holds the rights to two large open cut coal mines in Mongolia.
Aabar-SRC acquired 14 million shares in GCE on or around Dec 8, 2011 for US$91 million.
Barkhouse said she had identified that on Dec 16,2011, shortly after the US$91 million was paid by Aabar-SRC to GCE, the payments were made from a HSBC Hong Kong account in the name of GCE.
She said there was US$8.99 million to Blackstone and US$4.99 million to Globalink, with payment references of "commission" and "advisory fee".
The funds paid to Blackstone, she said, were subsequently distributed to several parties, including US$4.1 million to Alsen Chance Holdings Limited, a BVI incorporated company owned by Tan Kim Loong, an alleged associate of Low, on Dec 20, 2011.
She said there was also US$500,000 paid to Red Granite Pictures, a company controlled by Najib's stepson, Riza Aziz; as well as US$2.1 million to BVI incorporated Sunshine Developments Pte Ltd on Dec 19, 2011, which was dissolved the following year.
Barkhouse said US$1.2 million of the funds paid to Globalink were transferred to Rayan Inc. on Dec 20, 2011.
She said US$2.9 million of the funds paid to Globalink were paid to Blackstone on Dec 21, 2011.
Thereafter, between Dec 22 and 28, 2011, Blackstone distributed US$250,000 to Chee Suwen; US$750,000 to AK Worldwide Ltd; US$300,000 to Hubbards Limited; US$850,000 to California Clearing; US$350,000 to Alsen Chance, she added.
"I am currently unable to determine the reasons behind these payments or trace them any further," she said as she concluded that the payments were likely "kickbacks".
On May 7, 2021, SRC's new management initiated legal action against Najib, naming him as the first defendant, for alleged breach of trust and breach of statutory duty involving the RM4 billion Retirement Fund Incorporated loan to SRC.
SRC sought several declarations such as including Najib as being liable to account for and pay the sum of US$ 1.18 billion being the loss of the proposed investment funds.
It includes a declaration that Najib and former SRC chief executive officer Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil must return the sum of US$120 million and US$2 million respectively.
The trial before judge Datuk Ahmad Fairuz Zainol Abidin continues on March 25.