Malaysia’s High Court found former prime minister Najib Razak guilty on December 26 for the misappropriation of roughly RM2.3 billion in funds tied to 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), bringing a conclusion to one of the country’s most significant corruption cases.
1MDB is a state investment fund founded by Najib in 2009. However, approximately RM2.28 billion had been funneled into his personal bank accounts via a web of offshore entities. The former prime minister faced a total of 25 charges—comprising 21 counts of money laundering and four of abuse of power. Although he consistently denied any wrongdoing, Najib was convicted on all counts.
Justice Collin Lawrence Sequerah concluded that the prosecution had proven its case beyond a reasonable doubt. He found that Najib had both knowledge of and control over the disputed funds. The court also dismissed the defense’s claims that Najib had been misled by advisers or that the proceedings were politically driven.
The verdict is expected to deepen friction within Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s coalition government, which includes Najib’s former party, the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO). Tensions had already been strained earlier in the week when another court declined Najib’s appeal to serve his ongoing jail sentence under house arrest.
During the ruling, Justice Sequerah rejected Najib’s assertion that the RM2.3 billion was a political donation, stating that the so-called Arab donation letters referred to by the defense were fabricated. He cited testimony from Joanna Yu Ging Ping, a former AmBank relationship manager, and Jasmine Loo Ai Swan, former 1MDB general counsel, in reaching this conclusion.
Najib, now 72, faces maximum custodial terms ranging from 15 to 20 years for each charge, in addition to potential fines as high as five times the amount misappropriated. He has remained in custody since August 2022, when the country’s highest court upheld a conviction over illegally receiving money from a 1MDB subsidiary. His original 12-year sentence was reduced by a pardons board last year.
