Malaysia former Prime Minister Najib Razak has been sent to jail to begin serving a 12-year sentence, after the top court rejected his appeal.The 69-year-old’s charges relate to a corruption scandal involving state-owned wealth fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB).
He was convicted in July 2020, but had been out on bail during the appeal.
The court also denied Najib’s request to delay his sentence. He has continued to deny any wrongdoing.
In 2020, a court had found him guilty on seven counts – centred on a total of 42m ringgit ($9.4m; £8m) which was transferred from SRC International – a former unit of 1MDB – into his private accounts.He was sentenced to 12 years’ jail and a fine of 210m ringgit ($46.8m; £39.7m).
The defence team had argued Najib was led to believe the funds in his accounts were donated by the Saudi royal family rather than misappropriated from the state fund.
They also claimed he was misled by financial advisers, particularly fugitive financier Jho Low – who has been charged in both the US and Malaysia but also maintains his innocence.
Credit: bbc.com
