The Limited Times

Now you can see non-English news...

Malaysia: Appeal dismissed, ex-Prime Minister Najib Razak remains in prison

2023-03-31T05:56:10.610Z


Malaysian justice on Friday rejected the appeal filed by former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak against the 12-year prison sentence he...


Malaysian justice on Friday rejected the appeal filed by former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak against the 12-year prison sentence he is serving for corruption, closing the door to any return to politics.

The former leader had asked the federal court of the Southeast Asian country to reconsider the rejection of an appeal against his conviction linked to the embezzlement of vast sums of the sovereign wealth fund 1MDB.

Dozens of counts

"

There was no bias or lack of justice

" against the defendant, said federal court judge Vernon Ong Lam Kiat, rejecting the appeal.

Najib Razak, 69, claimed that he did not receive a fair trial, believing that the judge had been influenced by a conflict of interest, and that his defense had not had enough time to examine all the documents.

He will continue to serve his 12-year prison sentence linked to the transfer of 42 million ringgits (10.1 million dollars) from a branch of the sovereign wealth fund 1MDB to his personal bank account.

The ex-leader appeared affected by this court decision.

His wife Rosmah Mansor, also found guilty of embezzlement last year, also attended the hearing.

Read alsoMalaysia: ex-Prime Minister Muhyiddin charged with corruption

Najib Razak still faces dozens of other charges in this sprawling corruption case that could lengthen his sentence.

Most relate to his alleged role in the 1MDB scandal, named after the fund originally intended to develop Malaysia's economy but from which Najib Razak and his accomplices are accused of tapping into lavish purchases, ranging from real estate to works of art to a yacht.

This scandal sparked investigations around the world, including in the United States, Switzerland and Singapore, for using their financial systems to launder misappropriated money.

The 1MDB scandal also played a major role in the defeat of Najib Razak and his party in the 2018 elections.

Source: lefigaro

All news articles on 2023-03-31

You may like

News/Politics 2024-01-31T07:19:28.836Z

Trends 24h

Latest

© Communities 2019 - Privacy

The information on this site is from external sources that are not under our control.
The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.