Former Malaysian leader Najib Razak sentenced to 15 years and hefty fine in 1MDB corruption trial

FILE - Malaysian former Prime Minister Najib Razak, center, is escorted by prison officers on his arrival at the Kuala Lumpur High Court complex in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Oct. 30, 2024. Photo by Vincent Thian /AP

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PUTRAJAYA, Malaysia (AP) — Imprisoned former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak was sentenced to 15 years and a hefty 13.5 billion ringgit ($2.8 billion) in fines and seizure of assets after being convicted Friday in his biggest corruption trial tied to the multibillion-dollar looting of the 1MDB state investment fund.

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The nation’s High Court found Najib, 72, guilty on four counts of abuse of power and 21 charges of money laundering related to more than $700 million channeled into his personal bank accounts from the 1MDB fund.

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Justice Collin Lawrence Sequerah sentenced Najib to 15 years in prison for each charge of abuse of power, and five years for each of the money laundering charges. The sentences are to run concurrently which means he will face another 15 years in prison. The new sentence will run after his current term for an earlier 1MDB case ends, the judge said.

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He imposed a fine of 11.4 billion ringgit for the abuse of power charges. In addition, he also ordered another 2.08 billion ringgit in assets to be recovered from Najib under money laundering laws. If Najib fails to pay, he faces more years in prison,

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Najib’s lawyer said they plan to appeal the verdict. Dressed in blue suit, Najib stood up and was calm when the sentencing was announced, slumping later back in his chair in the dock.

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Najib denied wrongdoing

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The ruling marked a major milestone in one of the world’s largest financial scandals, which rippled across global markets and triggered investigations in the United States and other nations.

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Najib denied any wrongdoing and maintained the funds were a political donation from Saudi Arabia and that he had been misled by rogue financiers led by Low Taek Jho. Low, thought to be the scandal’s mastermind, remains at large.

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Sequerah said Najib’s claim of a Saudi donation was “incapable of belief.” Four letters purportedly from the Saudi donor were forged and evidence clearly showed the funds originated from 1MDB, he said.

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He rejected defense arguments that Najib was an unwitting victim, duped by former 1MDB officials and Low. Witness testimonies had pointed to an “unmistakable bond” between Najib and Low, who had played a pivotal role in the scandal and operated as “the proxy, the conduit, the intermediary and the facilitator” for Najib in 1MDB, the judge said.

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The judge noted that Najib failed to take steps to verify the origin of the massive funds nor took action against Low. Instead, Najib used the money despite its suspicious origins and took steps to protect his position, including by removing the then-attorney general and anti-corruption chief investigating the case, he said.

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

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“The accused was no country bumpkin,” said Sequerah, who took five hours to read the ruling. “Any attempt to paint the accused as an ignoramus who was hopelessly unaware of the misdeeds going around him must therefore, fail miserably.”