Here’s how the value of items seized by PDRM came to RM1 billion
Jae Senn
1. The stash included RM114 million to RM116 million in campaign funds, possibly for UMNO “carpet bombing”. No official paper trail, so we don’t know the details yet.
2. There was also the cash and valuables seized from Najib’s daughter and husband’s condo. Najib’s son-in-law, Daniyar Nazarbayev, is the nephew of Kazakhstan’s president, Nursultan Nazarbayev. He’s from a wealthy ruling class and wedding gifts from his mother, gifts that included gold and jewelry.
Their wedding was attended by VVIPs from both Malaysia and abroad, with many of these guests parting with expensive gifts that probably ran into the millions. These gifts, coupled with their personal belongings and cash, were seized in the police raids.
3. The condos of Tan Sri Desmond Lim Siew Choon and his wife, Datin Cindy Lim, were also raided by the authorities. Some may refer to the duo as Najib’s friends, while others may prefer to call them his cronies. Pictures from the raid clearly showed many boxes labeled “Datin Cindy” being wheeled out of the Pavilion condo
The said boxes contained nothing but luxury handbags. Tan Sri Desmond Lim is one of the wealthiest individuals in Malaysia, with a net worth of over RM2.4 billion. He has a 35.5% stake in Malton, a 37.2% stake in Pavilion REIT, and a 17.5% stake in WCT (which he spent over RM600 million to acquire in late-2016).
4. The valuables seized included high-quality counterfeits which were also valued at the price of genuine products for the time being. The jewellery and gold seized were valued at RM440 million, though through some fancy math and ‘logic’, that value miraculously ballooned to RM880 million. It was argued that with all the “workmanship” involved, the current market value would be 50-100% higher.
5. Now, we have to remember that all three condos raided in Pavilion did not belong to Najib. The said units were merely “connected” to him and were owned and occupied by other high net-worth individuals. But what about the items seized at Najib’s private residences and Sri Perdana?
