Former Malaysian PM Najib Razak Found Guilty of Abuse of Power in Latest 1MDB Trial
Najib Razak, the former Prime Minister of Malaysia, has been sentenced to an additional 15 years in prison after being found guilty of abuse of power in connection with the 1MDB graft scandal. This latest conviction adds to the six-year sentence he is currently serving from a separate 1MDB case, bringing the total to an effective 21 years if the sentences are served consecutively.
In the trial, Najib faced four counts of corruption and 21 counts of money laundering related to allegations that he received about 2.2 billion ringgit from the 1MDB state fund. Judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah convicted Najib on all four abuse-of-power counts, while the verdict on the 21 money-laundering charges is still pending.
The 1MDB scandal involves billions of dollars stolen from the state fund. Prosecutors have stated that at least $4.5 billion was stolen, with more than $1 billion linked directly to Najib’s accounts. Najib co-founded 1MDB in 2009 and has denied any wrongdoing.
Najib has been imprisoned since August 2022 following a separate corruption conviction. His initial 12-year sentence was later halved by a pardons board last year. Prosecutors allege that Najib abused his powerful positions as prime minister, finance minister, and chairman of the 1MDB advisory board to transfer funds into his personal accounts. His defense argued that he was misled about the transfers and that they were donations, but the judge rejected these claims.
This ruling may increase tensions within Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim's ruling coalition and UMNO, Najib's former party.
