In his second significant trial for a multibillion-dollar state finances scam, former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak was sentenced to 15 years in prison for abuse of power and money laundering. Najib, 72, was charged with embezzling around 2.3 billion Malaysian ringgit ($569 million; £422 million) from 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), the country’s sovereign wealth fund.
A judge convicted him of 21 counts of money laundering and four counts of abuse of power on Friday afternoon. Due to his conviction in a different 1MDB case years ago, the former prime minister is already incarcerated.
76 witnesses were called to testify over the seven years of legal proceedings that culminated in Friday’s decision. Delivered in Putrajaya, the administrative capital of Malaysia, the conviction marks the second setback for the troubled former leader, who has been imprisoned since 2022. He received five-year sentences for each of the twenty-one money laundering offenses and four 15-year terms for abuse of power. According to Malaysian law, the jail terms are concurrent.
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