Magistrate Umzarul An Nur Umar ruled that the prosecution had proven a prima facie case against Rafizi after calling in three witnesses.
“The prosecution has established the defamation charge,” she said.
The trial for Rafizi’s defence will resume from Nov 27 to 29.
Rafizi’s lawyer, Nik Zarith Nik Moustapha, said he would give a sworn statement from the witness stand.
“We will call about four defence witnesses when the trial resumes,” he added.
The PKR vice-president, who is vying for his party’s number two post, claimed trial to the amended charge of criminal defamation under Section 500 of the Penal Code last year.
The charge was amended after he complained that it was vague.
In the amended charge, Rafizi was accused of claiming that the pilgrims board’s reserves suffered a deficit for two years in a row, making TH incapable of returning depositors’ savings should they decide to withdraw the money in one go.
He also claimed that the RM3.53 billion profit announced by former minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Jamil Khir Baharom, did not take into account the losses suffered due to the drop in shares and security bonds held by TH for its investment.
Another detail in the charge pertains to Rafizi’s claims that TH paid bonuses amounting to more than it had earned in 2012 and 2014.
Rafizi alleged that the 2012 excess bonus was due to the approaching general election, while the 2014 payout was due to the 1MDB issue as the authorities needed to convince the public that issues affecting the state-owned fund had no effect on the local financial market.
According to the charge, he was accused of committing the offence at the TH building on Jalan Tun Razak here on Feb 18, 2016.
If found guilty, he will face a maximum jail term of two years, a fine, or both.
Rafizi is still fighting to quash his 30-month conviction under the Banking and Financial Institution Act or Bafia for leaking National Feedlot Corporation-related bank accounts.
He did not contest in the May 9 polls as he was disqualified under the Federal Constitution for his jail sentences under Bafia and the Official Secrets Act (OSA).
His 18-month OSA jail sentence was replaced by a two-year bond by the Court of Appeal in June.