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Najib loses final appeal against graft conviction

Najib's failed last-ditch attempt to get the Federal Court to overturn the Kuala Lumpur High Court ruling made in July 2020 meant he has to start serving his jail sentence immediately.

Kyodo News
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Wed, August 24, 2022

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Najib loses final appeal against graft conviction Mantan Perdana Menteri Malaysia Datuk Seri Najib Razak menyatakan akan banding ke Mahkamah Banding dalam jumpa pers usai sidang di Mahkamah Tinggi Kuala Lumpur, Selasa (28/7/2020). Najib dijatuhi hukuman 12 tahun dan denda RM.210 juta (sekitar Rp.718 miliar) dalam penyalahgunaan uang RM.42 juta (Rp.143 miliar) dana SRC International Sdn Bhd. (Antara/Agus Setiawan)

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alaysia's top court on Tuesday upheld former Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak's corruption conviction and 12-year jail sentence plus a 210 million ringgit ($47.15 million) fine meted out by a lower court two years ago.

Najib's failed last-ditch attempt to get the Federal Court to overturn the Kuala Lumpur High Court ruling made in July 2020 meant he has to start serving his jail sentence immediately.

The 69-year-old was tried on seven charges that include the illegal transfer of 42 million ringgit from SRC International Sdn. Bhd. to his private bank accounts between December 2014 and February 2015.

SRC is a former unit of 1Malaysia Development Berhad, a scandal-plagued sovereign fund that is the subject of money-laundering investigations across the globe.

Authorities in the United States and Malaysia estimated that around $4.5 billion has been misappropriated from the fund Najib founded.

Najib, who also held the finance minister portfolio when he was premier from 2009 until he was ousted in a 2018 general election, used to be an adviser of SRC and chairperson of 1MDB's board of advisers.

In December last year, Najib failed in his attempt to quash his conviction and jail sentence at the Court of Appeal.

Referring to Tuesday's unanimous decision by the five-member Federal Court panel hearing the appeal, Chief Justice Maimun Tuan Mat said, "In our judgement, there is no error in the findings of the High Court judge."

"We find the appellant's appeal is devoid of merits and the committal remains safe," she said.

Addressing the court before the judgement was read out, Najib bemoaned what he called mistreatment by the court after it denied his request to delay proceedings on the grounds that his new counsel, appointed just three weeks ago, needed time to prepare.

The Federal Court also rejected his last-minute application for Maimun to recuse herself over a four-year-old Facebook post by her husband in the aftermath of the 2018 general election that Najib said showed "negative sentiments" towards him.

"I feel mistreated, and a fair trial not been accorded to me," said Najib, who was slapped with a total 42 counts of corruption related to 1MDB following his ouster as premier.

The SRC trial is just one of five trials the former prime minister is facing.

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