Najadi was acting to protect temple’s interest

KUALA LUMPUR: Murdered Hussain Ahmad Najadi had played a role in protecting the interest of the Kuan Yin Temple in Jalan Ceylon.

The temple stands on a portion of land that was being negotiated for sale.

Police revealed that Najadi was neither a buyer nor a seller in the deal but was merely there to ensure the temple would not be sold or demolished.

It is learnt that the estimated value of the land is worth over RM40mil.

City CID chief Senior Asst Comm Datuk Ku Chin Wah said there had been speculation that Najadi was part of the land deal involving the temple but he was in fact appointed to protect it.

“We can safely say that he was not a buyer or a seller involved in the deal,” he said.

SAC Ku said police had yet to record a statement from Najadi’s wife Cheong Mei Kuen who is still recovering from her injuries.

It was learnt that Cheong was a devotee of the temple and would go there to pray from time to time.

Bahrain-born Najadi was a banker and founded Arab Investments for Asia Kuwait Ltd (AIAK) some 40 years ago in Kuwait.

Najadi later moved his business to Kuala Lumpur in the 1970s, where he founded Arab Malaysian Development Bank in 1975 before selling it to corporate figure Tan Sri Azman Hashim in 1982.

Azman then renamed the bank AmBank.

Najadi’s memoir about his life stories and early struggles The Sea And The Hills was published last April. The book received rave reviews.