Rosmah Mansor, the wife of former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak, pleaded not guilty this morning to 17 charges of money laundering and tax evasion, amounting to more than RM7 million (about 57 million baht).
Malaysian media reported that she was charged at Kuala Lumpur’s Sessions Court for allegedly receiving funds obtained from money-laundering activities. A calm-looking Rosmah responded by saying: “I claim trial.”
Bail was set at RM2 million with two sureties. Rosmah brought her two passports to court and will comply with the prosecution request to surrender the passports, said her lawyer.
Rosmah was arrested on Wednesday after being questioned for four hours at the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC). The New Straits Times this morning quoted Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad as saying that her arrest had nothing to do with revenge.
Mahathir was quoted as saying that no individual is higher than the law and action can be taken against anyone if they were found to have broken the law.
“This has absolutely nothing to do with revenge. The law says that if you take or steal money, you can be charged in court. Whether the court agrees or not, that is another matter,” he told reporters after attending the 3rd Asean Ministers’ Meeting on Disaster Management in Putrajaya.
