Malaysian Ex-PM Najib Sent To Jail For Corruption After Losing Final Appeal

Malaysia Top Court Sends Ex-PM Najib Razak To Prison For Corruption

EKO HOT BLOG reports that Malaysia’s former prime minister Najib Razak’s on Tuesday was sentenced to a 12-year jail sentence by the nation’s higest court for corruption.

EDITOR’S PICK

• Ukraine Crisis: Russia In Retreat As Putin Appears To Admit Defeat In Battle For Kiev

• Women, Children Queue To Return To Ukraine At Polish Train Station

• Ukraine Crisis: Abramovich, 2 Others ‘Poisoned During Peace

The 69-year-old’s charges relate to a corruption scandal involving state-owned wealth fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB).

The court also denied Najib’s request to delay his sentence though he has continued to deny any wrongdoing.

He was convicted in July 2020, but had been out on bail during the appeal, BBC reports.

In 2020, a court found him guilty on seven counts – centred on a total of 42m ringgit ($9.4m; £8m) which was transferred from SRC International – a former unit of 1MDB – into his private accounts.

He was sentenced to 12 years in prison and ordered to pay a fine of 210m ringgit ($46.8m; £39.7m).

The defence team had argued Najib was led to believe the funds in his accounts were donated by the Saudi royal family rather than misappropriated from the state fund.

They also claimed he was misled by financial advisers, particularly fugitive financier Jho Low – who has been charged in both the US and Malaysia but also maintains his innocence.

In his final push for freedom on Tuesday, Najib’s lawyer requested the removal of Chief Justice Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat from the panel presiding over the case – in what was seen as a bid to forestall a final verdict.

They claimed she could be biased as her husband had made a Facebook post in 2018 which was critical of Najib.

However, the chief justice declined the request as she said the post was before the charges were brought against Najib.

In her verdict, the chief justice said the five-judge panel unanimously found that the conviction of Najib on all seven counts was safe and the appeal “devoid of any merits”.

“The defence is so inherently inconsistent and incredible that it has not raised reasonable doubt on the case,” she said.

The charges addressed on Tuesday make up only the first of five trials relating to 1MDB.

FURTHER READING

• See Inside The Kremlin: Putin Grand Citadel With 9 Gigantic Churches, 700 Rooms

• Ukraine Crisis: Russian Soldiers Raping Many More Ukrainian Women, Says MP

• Ukraine Crisis: 7th Russian General Killed In Ukraine

Najib’s wife, Rosmah Mansor, also faces money laundering and tax evasion charges – to which she has pleaded not guilty.

She separately faces corruption charges related to a solar hybrid project, and the High Court is set to deliver her verdict for this case on September 1, 2022.

Click to watch our video of the week

---

Advertise or Publish a Story on EkoHot Blog:

Kindly contact us at [email protected]. Breaking stories should be sent to the above email and substantiated with pictorial evidence.

Citizen journalists will receive a token as data incentive.

Call or Whatsapp: 0803 561 7233, 0703 414 5611