KUALA LUMPUR (MNN); Former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak has been convicted and sentenced to 15 years in prison in his second major trial linked to the multibillion-dollar 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) scandal.
The Kuala Lumpur High Court on Friday found the 72-year-old Najib guilty on all charges, including 21 counts of money laundering and four counts of abuse of power. The case involved the illegal transfer of 2.2 billion Malaysian ringgit, equivalent to about $543 million, from the state-owned 1MDB sovereign wealth fund into Najib’s personal bank accounts.
Delivering the verdict, Judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah rejected Najib’s claim that the case was politically motivated. The judge said the defence arguments were contradicted by strong and conclusive evidence showing that Najib had abused his powerful positions within 1MDB and the government.
Prosecutors argued that Najib misused his authority as prime minister, finance minister and chairman of the 1MDB advisory board to divert large sums of public funds into his personal accounts more than a decade ago. The court sentenced him to 15 years’ imprisonment for each abuse of power conviction and five years for each money laundering charge. All sentences will run concurrently.
Najib was earlier convicted in 2020 in another 1MDB-related case and sentenced to 12 years in prison for misappropriating nearly $10 million. That sentence was later reduced to six years.
This second trial is considered the most significant so far as it directly involved core 1MDB entities and much larger financial amounts. The proceedings lasted seven years, during which 76 witnesses, including Najib himself, testified.
Legal experts described the case as complex and lengthy, noting that financial crimes of this scale often involve multiple layers of transactions and prolonged investigations.
During the trial, Najib maintained that he had been misled by fugitive financier Jho Low, who has been wanted by Interpol since 2016. However, the court ruled that evidence showed a close and clear relationship between Najib and Low, describing the latter as acting as Najib’s proxy and intermediary.
The judge also dismissed Najib’s defence that he believed some of the funds were donations from the Saudi royal family, stating that Najib was fully aware of the nature of the transactions. The judge emphasised that Najib was an experienced leader who could not credibly claim ignorance of the wrongdoing.
The 1MDB scandal, which came to light in 2015, marked a turning point in Malaysian politics and contributed to the defeat of the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) in the 2018 general elections after decades in power.
Despite the convictions, Najib continues to enjoy support among sections of the public, and the verdict is expected to have political repercussions. Analysts warn that the ruling could affect the stability of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s coalition government, of which UMNO is a key partner.
Political observers say the outcome of Najib’s trial will serve as a crucial test of Malaysia’s judiciary and its commitment to political accountability, particularly as appeals and further legal proceedings are expected.
