Najib Razak Stays Put in Jail

Malaysia's Federal Court in a 4-1 decision yesterday refused disgraced former prime minister Najib Razak’s (right) bid for them to review their ruling last year upholding his conviction for misappropriating RM42 million from SRC International and cementing his 12-year sentence and RM210 million fine. 

 

The majority decision by four judges on the panel rejected Najib’s challenge against his conviction and sentence in the SRC case, and effectively endorsed the August 2022 decision of the Federal Court panel chaired by Chief Justice Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat which had ordered Najib to begin serving his sentence. 

 

Federal Court judge Vernon Ong Lam Kiat read out the majority decision, which was agreed to by three others on the panel: Federal Court judges Rhodzariah Bujang and Nordin Hassan, and Court of Appeal judge Abu Bakar Jais who was sitting as a Federal Court judge. 

 

Chief Judge of Sabah and Sarawak Abdul Rahman Sebli, who was chairing the five-judge bench, was the only judge who dissented/disagreed with the majority. 

 

Yesterday’s decision meant Najib must remain in prison, where he has spent the last seven months now. 

 

On July 28, 2020, Justice Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali found Najib guilty of all seven charges – three for criminal breach of trust, three for money-laundering, and one for abuse of power – at the High Court. Mohd Nazlan, who is now a Court of Appeal judge, then sentenced Najib to 12 years in prison and fined him RM210 million in default five years imprisonment. His decision was upheld by the Court of Appeal on December 08, 2021.