Malaysian ex-PM Najib gets 12-yr jail in corruption case
Kuala Lumpur, July 28
Malaysia’s former leader Najib Razak was found guilty of corruption and sentenced to 12 years in jail on Tuesday in the first trial over a multi-billion-dollar scandal at state fund 1MDB that stretched to the Gulf states and Hollywood.
In a case widely seen as a test of the nation’s resolve to stamp out corruption and which could have big political implications, high court judge Mohamad Nazlan Mohamad Ghazali sentenced Najib to 12 years and a fine of 210 million ringgit ($49 million) on a charge of abuse of power.
‘Kleptocracy at its worst’
- Former US attorney-general Jeff Sessions described the scandal as kleptocracy at its worst
- Malaysia’s former leader Najib Razak has pleaded not guilty, and says he will appeal the verdict in Malaysia’s Federal Court if convicted
Najib, 67, also received 10 years in jail on each of three charges of criminal breach of trust and three charges of money laundering for illegally receiving nearly $10 million from SRC International, a former unit of the state fund.
“After considering all evidence in this trial, I find that the prosecution has successfully proven its case beyond a reasonable doubt,” Mohamad Nazlan said. He ordered the jail terms to run concurrently.
The judge allowed a request by Najib’s lawyers to delay the jail sentence and the financial penalty, but asked Najib to post additional bail and report to a police station twice a month.
Najib had pleaded not guilty, and said he would appeal the verdict in Malaysia’s Federal Court if convicted. The verdict could potentially be partially or fully overturned by the higher court on appeal, though that could take years. — Reuters
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