Former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak’s transfer from prison to house arrest has been postponed pending further review of conditions around a royal pardon, the attorney general’s office said.
Najib was due to have left prison Friday after the political party he once led paid a 50 million-ringgit ($12.3 million) fine. The penalty was required under the terms of the pardon. However, the attorney general’s office said in a statement dated Friday that house arrest would be “temporarily deferred” while it sought clarification on the interpretation of the pardon. In the meantime, Najib would remain in his current place of detention, it said.
Najib, 73, has been in jail since August 2022 after he was found guilty of corruption while he was in power and chairing the advisory board of the country’s sovereign wealth fund 1Malaysia Development Bhd., known as 1MDB. Najib has consistently denied wrongdoing in various cases related to 1MDB.
The move to house arrest is putting fresh pressure on Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s coalition, with a senior minister stepping down over the decision. Transport Minister Anthony Loke said late Friday he would resign from the cabinet as soon as Najib begins serving his sentence at home, following through on a pledge he made earlier. Also on Friday, Anwar told reporters that he disagreed with the decision of the United Malays National Organisation to pay Najib’s fine, warning that personal ties shouldn’t create the impression that corruption and abuse of power can be overlooked. Still, he said the payment was UMNO’s prerogative.
Source: Bloomberg Markets · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing