Malaysia ex-PM Razak gets new jail term, $2.8 billion fine in 1 MDB case

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

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

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 meaning 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. He also imposed a fine of 13.5 million ringgit. If Najib fails to pay, he faces another 10 years in prison. Najib’s lawyer said they plan to appeal the verdict. Dressed in blue suit, Najib was calm when the sentencing was announced, slumping later back in his chair in the dock.

The ruling marked a key milestone in one of the world’s largest financial scandals, which rippled across global markets and triggered investigations in the US and other nations. Najib has 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.