Royal Malaysian Customs Department (JKDM) officials have combed through seven years of records, and are reporting that no import declaration was ever made on the 44 pieces of “consignment” jewelry that have been linked to former first lady, Rosmah Mansor.
Addressing the lower house yesterday, Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng revealed that there were no records that show the jewels ever coming into the country.
The haul gained public notoriety after Global Royalty Trading, a Lebanese wholesale jeweler, filed a RM60million (US$14.8 million) suit against her, asking for the return of 44 jewelry pieces (or payment!) that was seized in relation to police raids on properties linked to her husband, Najib Razak.
Among the sparklers was a tiara. Ha.
Not declaring an import is illegal in Malaysia, and unfortunately for both Rosmah and Global Royalty Trading, the offense has sundry consequences, including seizure of said items by the Malaysian Customs Department.
Last week, Rosmah counter-sued the jewelers, claiming that the pieces were simply sent to her.
Global Royalty maintains they sent the jewels to the former first lady on consignment, and were awaiting her evaluation before she decided to buy or not.
Now, it’s looking like there’s a chance they may not recover the jewels. Or money.
Both Rosmah and Global Royalty will have their day in court later this year. We’ll keep you posted!
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