2-2-2024 (KUALA LUMPUR) Former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak’s prison sentence for corruption has been reduced from 12 to six years, according to an announcement by Malaysia’s Pardons Board. The decision was made during a meeting held on January 29.
Citing government officials, including senior sources, CNA reported on January 31 that Najib had received a partial royal pardon. Najib, 70, has served less than two years of his sentence related to the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) case.
As a result of the reduced jail term, Najib is expected to be released on August 23, 2028. The Pardons Board also decreased his fine from RM210 million (US$44.5 million) to RM50 million.
However, the statement noted that if the fine is not paid, an additional year will be added to Najib’s prison sentence, leading to a release date of August 23, 2029.
Speculation about a potential pardon grew after Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Federal Territories) Dr Zaliha Mustafa confirmed that the Pardons Board had convened on Monday. The meeting was one of the final official duties of Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin, who stepped down as Malaysia’s king on January 31, passing the role to Johor ruler Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar under the country’s rotation system for its nine royal state households.
Najib served as Malaysia’s prime minister for nine years until May 2018 and became the country’s first former prime minister to be imprisoned. He began serving his jail term in August 2022 after unsuccessful attempts to overturn his conviction at the Malaysian High Court two years earlier.
Najib’s charges involved the transfer of RM42 million from SRC International, a former subsidiary of 1MDB, into his personal bank accounts in 2014 and 2015. In July 2020, the High Court found him guilty of three counts of criminal breach of trust, three counts of money laundering, and one count of abuse of power. He was sentenced to 12 years in jail and fined RM210 million, which remains unpaid.
Additionally, Najib faces several other charges related to the 1MDB scandal, including the alleged laundering of RM27 million from funds linked to SRC International. His lawyers have applied to dismiss the money laundering case, and the court has granted him the option to apply for an acquittal or a discharge not amounting to an acquittal if the prosecutors are not ready to proceed with the trial scheduled for September.
Despite his legal troubles, Najib is still believed to hold significant influence within the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), a party that is part of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s unity government.
