KUALA LUMPUR (June 17): It turns out that there were even more secret transactions involving SRC International Sdn Bhd funds that were concealed from its board of directors.

Tan Sri Ismee Ismail — who previously served as the former 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) subsidiary's chairman — told the High Court here today that the board was unaware of several cash transfers that took place, including the depositing of RM2 billion into a secret AmBank Islamic account ending 736 that was opened in January 2011 and a launching grant of RM20 million from the Economic Planning Unit.

Today, he also revealed that the board had no idea that Nik Faisal was applying for a second RM2 billion loan from Retirement Fund (Incorporated) (KWAP) and another government guarantee for the loan.

Ismee, who is the 39th witness called by the prosecution, was also shown that the second KWAP loan was deposited to SRC's 650 account on March 28, 2012 and was transferred out two days later.

Ismee said the SRC board had a meeting on Feb 14, 2014 and during that time the board was not informed of the government guarantee that was being arranged by Nik Faisal.

"During the June 2012 SRC board meeting, the immediate one held after Feb 14, the board was not told about when the second RM2 billion loan was approved by the retirement fund and when the drawdown occurred," the witness said when shown by counsel Harvinderjit Singh that the money came in on March 28, 2012 and was withdrawn on March 30, 2012.

"This was done without the board's knowledge," he added.

He also agreed that the money in the AmBank Islamic account cannot be withdrawn without the Group A signatories signing the transfer of the fund.

The former CEO also verified that he does not know where the second RM2 billion loan went to.

Ismee also told the court that he was not aware of the role played by former Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop in helping secure the government guarantee for the second loan.

The witness was also shown of several transfers done by SRC on July 8, 11, and 14, 2014 involving millions of ringgit from SRC's 650 account to Putra Perdana Construction Sdn Bhd.

Ismee says he was not aware of the cash transfers involving fellow director Datuk Suboh Mohd Yasin.

"This is a serious transgression. I was not told about this by [fellow director] Suboh," he added, agreeing with Harvinderjit.

Ismee was responding to presentations of transactions from the defence, who are trying to show that Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil, SRC's ex-managing director and CEO whose whereabouts is now unknown, was involved in many of these transactions which his fellow board members were unaware of.

Ismee: I only know now they are Jho Low's associates
The witness further added that the board had in 2014 asked Nik Faisal to bring the money that is kept overseas back.

However, Ismee agreed that until 2015, the money had not been brought back.

Ismee, who was formerly Tabung Haji chief executive officer, also said he only got to know that some personnel in SRC were close associates of fugitive businessman Low Taek Jho — better known as Jho Low — recently.

Jho Low does not hold any positions in SRC or 1MDB but he is said to play a pivotal role in the transfer of funds and has been charged in absentia in the United States and Malaysia.

The question came about when Ismee was asked by the lawyer on a transfer of fund from SRC to Putrajaya Perdana Bhd, where Jerome Lee was a director at Putrajaya Perdana as he was also at SRC.

This is followed by Harvinderjit asking Ismee whether he was aware that Terence Geh, Nik Faisal, Casey Tang and Lee are all close associates of Jho Low, and this led to Ismee replying: "Only now I know."

The former SRC chairman also agreed that there were 14 problems regarding the 2013 audited accounts that had not been submitted to the Companies Commission of Malaysia as they had been rejected by the board, and the reason for this was that they had problems checking the accounts held by the company overseas.