Malaysia’s top court allows jailed ex-PM Najib to pursue legal bid for house arrest

KUALA LUMPUR - Jailed former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak won a major court battle on Aug 13 that took him a step closer to being able to serve out at home a years-long jail term over the multibillion-dollar 1MDB scandal.

Najib,

imprisoned since August 2022

in one of several cases related to state investor 1Malaysia Development Berhad, has been seeking a judicial review to compel the authorities to confirm the existence of and execute a royal order issued by the former king, Sultan Abdullah Ahmad Shah, entitling him to serve the remainder of his jail sentence under house arrest.

In a unanimous decision, the Federal Court, Malaysia’s top tribunal, said on Aug 13 it accepted that there was a royal document related to granting house arrest for Najib but it was not in a position to determine its authenticity.

Najib has said that an addendum order accompanied a pardon by Sultan Abdullah in January 2024 that halved his sentence from 12 years to six.

The case has stirred intrigue in Malaysia, with multiple government authorities, including members of the pardons board, for months

denying knowledge of the royal document

despite the former king’s office confirming it had been issued.

The Federal Court’s three-member panel said that while it accepted the order’s existence, it could not determine whether it was truly issued as part of the pardon.

The court declined a request by Najib’s lawyer to hear further arguments, referring the case back to a lower tribunal.

“We remit the case to the High Court for the hearing of the substantive judicial review proceedings before a new judge,” said Federal Court judge Zabariah Mohd Yusof.

Najib was found guilty in 2020 of criminal breach of trust and abuse of power for illegally receiving funds misappropriated from a unit of 1MDB. 

Although some 1MDB-linked charges against him have been dropped, he is still awaiting a verdict in the biggest trial he faces over the scandal, with the court expected to hear closing arguments in October. 

Najib has denied all the charges brought against him.

Addendum’s existence undisputed

The Aug 13 decision is expected to boost calls by Najib’s party Umno for him to be granted house arrest.

Umno campaigned against current Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, but joined Datuk Seri Anwar’s coalition in government following a 2022 election that resulted in a hung Parliament.

More than 100 people gathered outside the court complex on Aug 13 to support Najib, who lost the 2018 election amid public anger over 1MDB.

Najib initiated his judicial review in April 2024.

The bid was initially dismissed by the Kuala Lumpur High Court, but was overturned on appeal in January, after

Najib’s lawyers produced a letter

from the former king’s palace saying there was an addendum.

The Attorney-General’s office appealed against the decision questioning the document’s admissibility.

A lawyer acting on behalf of the Attorney-General told the court in July that he did not dispute the document’s existence, but was challenging the way in which it was being submitted as evidence.

The Federal Court said the concession by the Attorney-General that the order existed had a significant impact on its decision on Aug 13.

“As of now, the addendum order exists and its status vis-a-vis its validity or whether it is true needs to be ascertained at a substantive hearing,” Judge Zabariah said.

The court fixed Aug 18 for the case to be heard at the High Court. REUTERS