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Straits Times
2 days ago
- Business
- Straits Times
Malaysia's top court allows jailed ex-PM Najib to pursue legal bid for house arrest
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox A supporter of former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak outside the Federal Court in Putrajaya, on Aug 13. KUALA LUMPUR - Jailed former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak won a major court battle on Aug 13 that took him a step closer to being able to serve out at home a years-long jail term over the multibillion-dollar 1MDB scandal. Najib, imprisoned since August 2022 in one of several cases related to state investor 1Malaysia Development Berhad, has been seeking a judicial review to compel the authorities to confirm the existence of and execute a royal order issued by the former king, Sultan Abdullah Ahmad Shah, entitling him to serve the remainder of his jail sentence under house arrest. In a unanimous decision, the Federal Court, Malaysia's top tribunal, said on Aug 13 it accepted that there was a royal document related to granting house arrest for Najib but it was not in a position to determine its authenticity. Najib has said that an addendum order accompanied a pardon by Sultan Abdullah in January 2024 halved his sentence from 12 years to six. The case has stirred intrigue in Malaysia, with multiple government authorities, including members of the pardons board, for months denying knowledge of the royal document despite the former king's office confirming it had been issued. The Federal Court's three-member panel said that while it accepted the order's existence, it could not determine whether it was truly issued as part of the pardon. The court declined a request by Najib's lawyer to hear further arguments, referring the case back to a lower tribunal. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Business Singapore banks face headwinds in rest of 2025, but DBS is pulling ahead: Analysts Singapore Yishun man admits to making etomidate-laced pods for vaporisers; first Kpod case conviction Singapore HSA seeks Kpod investigators to arrest abusers, conduct anti-trafficking ops Asia Malaysia's anti-graft agency busts arms smuggling ring masterminded by senior military officers Asia Mixed reactions among Malaysia drivers on S'pore move to clamp down on illegal ride-hailing services Singapore Allianz insures Singapore's first fully driverless bus amid challenges posed by autonomous vehicles Business Singapore life insurance sales surges in first half, led by boost in investment-linked plans Singapore SG60: Many hands behind Singapore's success story 'We remit the case to the High Court for the hearing of the substantive judicial review proceedings before a new judge,' said Federal Court judge Zabariah Mohd Yusof. Najib was found guilty in 2020 of criminal breach of trust and abuse of power for illegally receiving funds misappropriated from a unit of 1MDB. Although some 1MDB-linked charges against him have been dropped, he is still awaiting a verdict in the biggest trial he faces over the scandal, with the court expected to hear closing arguments in October. Najib has denied all the charges brought against him. Addendum's existence undisputed The Aug 13 decision is expected to boost calls by Najib's party Umno for him to be granted house arrest. Umno campaigned against current Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, but joined Datuk Seri Anwar's coalition in government following a 2022 election that resulted in a hung Parliament. More than 100 people gathered outside the court complex on Aug 13 to support Najib, who lost the 2018 General Election amid public anger over 1MDB. Najib initiated his judicial review in April 2024. The bid was initially dismissed by the Kuala Lumpur High Court, but was overturned on appeal in January, after Najib's lawyers produced a letter from the former king's palace saying there was an addendum. The Attorney-General's office appealed against the decision questioning the document's admissibility. A lawyer acting on behalf of the Attorney-General told the court in July that he did not dispute the document's existence, but was challenging the way in which it was being submitted as evidence. The Federal Court said the concession by the Attorney-General that the order existed had a significant impact on its decision on Aug 13. 'As of now, the addendum order exists and its status vis-a-vis its validity or whether it is true needs to be ascertained at a substantive hearing,' Judge Zabariah said. The court fixed Aug 18 for the case to be heard at the High Court. REUTERS
Business Times
2 days ago
- Business
- Business Times
Malaysia's top court allows jailed ex-PM Najib to pursue legal bid for house arrest
[KUALA LUMPUR] Jailed former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak won a major court battle on Wednesday (Aug 13) that took him a step closer to being able to serve out a years-long jail term over the multi-billion dollar 1MDB scandal at home. Najib, imprisoned since August 2022 in one of several cases related to 1MDB, has been seeking a judicial review to compel authorities to confirm the existence of and execute a royal order issued by former King Al-Sultan Abdullah entitling him to serve the remainder of his jail sentence under house arrest. In a unanimous decision, the Federal Court, Malaysia's top tribunal, said on Wednesday it accepted that there was a royal document related to granting house arrest for Najib but it was not in a position to determine its authenticity. Najib has said an addendum order accompanied a pardon by Al-Sultan Abdullah in January last year that halved his sentence from 12 years to six. The case has stirred intrigue in Malaysia, with multiple government authorities, including members of the pardons board, for months denying knowledge of the document despite the former king's office saying an addendum had been issued. The Federal Court's three-member panel said while it accepted the order's existence, it could not determine whether it was truly issued as part of the pardon. A NEWSLETTER FOR YOU Friday, 8.30 am Asean Business Business insights centering on South-east Asia's fast-growing economies. Sign Up Sign Up The court declined a request by Najib's lawyer to hear further arguments, referring the case back to a lower tribunal. 'We remit the case to the High Court for the hearing of the substantive judicial review proceedings before a new judge,' said Federal Court judge Zabariah Mohd Yusof. Najib was found guilty in 2020 of criminal breach of trust and abuse of power for illegally receiving funds misappropriated from a unit of state investor 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB). Although some 1MDB-linked charges against him have been dropped, Najib is still awaiting a verdict in the biggest trial he faces over the scandal, with the court expected to hear closing arguments in October. He has denied all the charges against him. Wednesday's decision is expected to boost calls by Najib's party, the United Malays National Organisation (Umno), for him to be granted house arrest. Umno campaigned against current Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, but joined Anwar's coalition in government following a 2022 election that resulted in a hung parliament. More than 100 people gathered outside the court complex on Wednesday to support Najib, who lost the 2018 election amid public anger over 1MDB. Najib initiated his judicial review in April last year. The bid was initially dismissed by the Kuala Lumpur High Court, but was overturned on appeal in January, after Najib's lawyers produced a letter from the former king's palace saying there was an addendum. The attorney-general's office appealed the decision questioning the document's admissibility. A lawyer acting on behalf of the attorney-general told the court in July he did not dispute the document's existence, but was challenging the way in which it was being submitted as evidence. The Federal Court said the concession by the attorney-general that the order existed had a significant impact on its decision on Wednesday. 'As of now, the addendum order exists and its status vis-a-vis its validity or whether it is true needs to be ascertained at a substantive hearing,' judge Zabariah said. The court fixed August 18 for the case to be heard at the High Court. REUTERS
AsiaOne
2 days ago
- Politics
- AsiaOne
Malaysia's top court dismisses appeal against jailed ex-PM Najib's house arrest bid, Malaysia News
KUALA LUMPUR — Malaysia's top court on Wednesday (Aug 13) dismissed an appeal by the attorney-general to block jailed ex-premier Najib Razak from pursuing access to a royal document that he says would allow him to serve his sentence at home. Najib, imprisoned since August 2022 for his role in the multi-billion dollar 1MDB scandal, has said that an addendum order was issued last year as part of a royal pardon by then-king Al-Sultan Abdullah that halved the former premier's jail sentence from 12 years to six. Najib has since been seeking to confirm the existence of and execute the royal order. The case has stirred intrigue in Malaysia, with multiple government authorities, including members of the pardons board, for months denying knowledge of the royal document despite the former king's office confirming it had been issued. A three-member panel of the Federal Court, in a unanimous decision on Wednesday, said it accepted the existence of the addendum order, but was not in a position to determine if it was authentic or truly issued as part of the royal pardon. "We remit the case to the High Court for the hearing of the substantive judicial review proceedings before a new judge," Federal Court judge Zabariah Mohd Yusof said. Najib was found guilty in 2020 of criminal breach of trust and abuse of power for illegally receiving funds misappropriated from a unit of state investor 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB). Although some 1MDB-linked charges against him have been dropped, Najib is still awaiting a verdict in the biggest trial he faces over the scandal, with the court expected to hear closing arguments in October. He has denied all of the charges brought against him. [[nid:720033]]
Straits Times
2 days ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
Malaysia's top court dismisses appeal against ex-PM Najib's house arrest bid
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox A supporter of former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak outside the Federal Court in Putrajaya, on Aug 13. KUALA LUMPUR - Malaysia's top court on Aug 13 dismissed an appeal by the Attorney-General to block jailed former prime minister Najib Razak from pursuing access to a royal document that he says would allow him to serve his sentence at home. Najib, who has been imprisoned since August 2022 for his role in the multibillion-dollar 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) scandal, has said that an addendum order was issued in 2024 as part of a royal pardon by Sultan Abdullah Ahmad Shah – who was then the King – that halved the former premier's jail sentence from 12 years to six . Najib has since been seeking to confirm the existence of and execute the royal order. The case has stirred intrigue in Malaysia, with multiple government authorities, including members of the pardons board, for months denying knowledge of the royal document despite the former king's office confirming it had been issued. A three-member panel of the Federal Court, in a unanimous decision on Aug 13, said it accepted the existence of the addendum order, but was not in a position to determine if it was authentic or truly issued as part of the royal pardon. 'We remit the case to the High Court for the hearing of the substantive judicial review proceedings before a new judge,' said Federal Court judge Zabariah Mohd Yusof. Najib was found guilty in 2020 of criminal breach of trust and abuse of power for illegally receiving funds misappropriated from a unit of state investor 1MDB. Although some 1MDB-linked charges against him have been dropped, he is still awaiting a verdict in the biggest trial he faces over the scandal, with the court expected to hear closing arguments in October. Najib has denied all the charges brought against him. REUTERS
Business Times
10-07-2025
- Business
- Business Times
Malaysia confirms order that's key to Najib's house arrest
[KUALA LUMPUR] Malaysia's Attorney General's Chambers has confirmed for the first time the existence of a document that former premier Najib Razak says would allow him to serve the rest of his jail term for corruption under house arrest, local media reported. Senior federal counsel Shamsul Bolhassan confirmed the existence of an additional royal order issued by a former king, the Malay Mail reported on Wednesday (Jul 9), citing proceedings before a panel of Federal Court judges. It's a major victory for Najib in his legal bid to compel the government to verify and carry out the royal order. He is serving time in prison for crimes related to a multi-billion dollar scandal at state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB). Najib, who was jailed in August 2022, has repeatedly denied wrongdoing. Attorney general Mohd Dusuki Mokhtar and Najib's counsel, Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, did not respond to a request for comment early Thursday. Malaysia's former king, Abdullah Ahmad Shah, halved Najib's 12-year prison sentence and reduced his fines last year. Since then, Najib has been claiming that the royal issued a supplementary order. The latest twist raises scrutiny on Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and his vow to combat corruption. Anwar has said that any final decision by the king must be made during the Pardons Board meeting. Najib's victory could have an impact on Malaysia's political stability. He remains influential in the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), a party he once led and which Anwar needs support to stay in power. UMNO has championed for Najib's release and eventual return to politics, but any reprieve given to him is likely to draw public backlash against Anwar and his government. Najib in June was granted a discharge, a reprieve that does not amount to an acquittal, on three counts of money laundering breaches related to SRC International, a former unit of 1MDB. This follows a decision in March 2023 to free him from another 1MDB-linked charge. BLOOMBERG
