Former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak had allegedly reached out to Mohd Bakke Salleh on fugitive businessperson Low Taek Jho's mobile phone after the 1MDB chairperson at the time raised doubts about a joint-venture deal with PetroSaudi International (PSI).

This was according to former 1MDB CEO Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi's 273-page witness statement which he read out during Najib's 1MDB graft trial at the Kuala Lumpur High Court today.

Meanwhile, Inspector-General of Police Abdul Hamid Bador said intelligence suggests fugitive businessperson Low Taek Jho, better known as Jho Low, is using his vast wealth to buy influence and is able to roam freely in an undisclosed country.

However, Hamid said police is negotiating with that country to bring back Low, who is described as a mastermind in the 1MDB scandal.