Najib's graft trial enters third week

KUALA LUMPUR, Apr 29 (AP): Malaysia's former Prime Minister Najib Razak has failed in his bid to have seven corruption charges against him dismissed as his trial entered the third week on Monday.

At the start of his trial April 03, Najib challenged the criminal breach of trust, abuse of power and money laundering charges against him on grounds they lacked clarity and impeded the preparation of his defense.

Judge Mohamad Nazlan Mohamad Ghazali ruled Monday that Najib hadn't been prejudiced as his lawyers had extensively cross-examined 21 witnesses who testified so far. The judge ruled the charges would stand.

The trial is the first of several against Najib, who faces 42 graft charges in one of the country's biggest criminal proceedings.

The first seven charges specifically relate to the suspicious transfer of 42 million ringgit ($10.2 million) from SRC International into Najib's bank accounts via intermediary companies between 2011 and 2015.