Najib Razak In More Trouble! 15 Year Imprisonment, $3.3Bn Fine For Jailed Former Malaysian PM In 1MDB Corruption Trial

(MENAFN- Live Mint) Jailed former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak was sentenced to 15 years in prison and fined 13.5 billion ringgit ($3.3 billion), along with asset seizures, on Friday following his conviction in the country's largest corruption case linked to the massive misappropriation of the 1MDB state investment fund, according to the news agency AP.

The High Court ruled Najib, 72, guilty on four counts of abuse of power and 21 charges of money laundering, involving over $700 million that had been transferred into his personal accounts from the 1MDB fund.

Justice Collin Lawrence Sequerah sentenced Najib Razak to 15 years in prison for each abuse of power charge and five years for each money laundering charge, with the sentences to run concurrently, meaning Najib will serve another 15 years in prison. The judge clarified that this new sentence will begin after his current term for an earlier 1MDB case ends.

A fine of 11.4 billion ringgit was imposed for the abuse of power charges, along with 2.08 billion ringgit in assets to be recovered under money laundering laws. Najib faces additional prison time if he fails to pay, the report noted.

Najib's lawyer stated they plan to appeal the verdict. Wearing a blue suit, Najib remained composed as the sentence was read, though he later slumped back into his chair in the dock.

Najib refuted any wrongdoing, claiming the funds were a political donation from Saudi Arabia and that he had been misled by rogue financiers led by Low Taek Jho. Low, regarded as the scandal's mastermind, remains at large.

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Sequerah dismissed Najib's claim of a Saudi donation as“incapable of belief", noting that four letters purportedly from the Saudi donor were forged and that evidence clearly showed the funds originated from 1MDB.

The judge also rejected defense arguments that Najib was an unwitting victim, duped by former 1MDB officials and Low. Witnesses had testified to an“unmistakable bond” between Najib and Low, who had acted as“the proxy, the conduit, the intermediary and the facilitator” for Najib in 1MDB.

Sequerah pointed out that Najib failed to verify the source of the funds or take action against Low. Instead, he used the money despite its suspicious origins and took steps to protect his position, including removing the then-attorney general and anti-corruption chief investigating the case.

While Najib returned most of the funds to the offshore account from which they came, the judge said this was clearly staged to conceal the illicit origin of the funds.

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“The accused was no country bumpkin. Any attempt to paint the accused as an ignoramus who was hopelessly unaware of the misdeeds going around him must therefore, fail miserably,” AP quoted Sequerah as saying.

Najib, who served as Malaysia's prime minister from 2009 to 2018, is currently in prison following a conviction in a previous case related to the 1MDB scandal, which contributed to his government's electoral loss in 2018. In 2020, he was sentenced to 12 years for abuse of power, criminal breach of trust, and money laundering involving 42 million ringgit ($10.3 million) that had been deposited into his accounts from SRC International, a former 1MDB subsidiary.

He began serving his sentence in August 2022 after losing his final appeal, making him the first former Malaysian leader to be jailed. In 2024, the Pardons Board, which advises the country's rulers on clemency, reduced his sentence by half and significantly lowered his fine.

Earlier this week, Najib's attempt to serve his corruption sentence under house arrest was rejected. Malaysia's High Court ruled on Monday that a rare royal order for home confinement, issued by the country's former king, was invalid because it did not meet constitutional requirements. Najib's lawyer has stated they plan to appeal the decision.

After his sentence reduction, Najib was originally set for release in August 2028, but he now goes through a longer period in prison.

Meanwhile, Najib's wife, Rosmah Mansor, was also sentenced in 2022 to 10 years in prison and a substantial fine in a separate corruption case. She has been released on bail while her appeal is pending.

(With inputs from AP)

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