Malaysian ex-PM Najib working on conditions to start house arrest, his lawyers say
SINGAPORE: Malaysia’s jailed former prime minister, Najib Razak , is working to fulfil the conditions to leave jail and begin his house arrest, including paying a 50-million-ringgit ($12-million) fine, his lawyers said on Sunday. Najib’s ability to satisfy the condition “do not lie in his own hands” as a significant part of his assets, bank accounts and properties remain subject to freeze orders…
Malaysia’s ex-Prime Minister Najib Razak is actively working on meeting the prerequisites to start his house arrest, according to his legal representatives. The key conditions to be fulfilled include paying a fine of 50 million ringgit (approximately $12 million), his lawyers disclosed on Sunday. However, the lawyers emphasized that Najib's capacity to meet this condition does not solely depend on his own resources as a significant portion of his assets, bank accounts, and properties are currently under freeze orders imposed by the government.
Najib, who served as Prime Minister from 2009 to 2018, was convicted of corruption linked to the misappropriation of billions of dollars from the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) investment fund, which he co-founded while in office. Despite this, Najib has consistently maintained his innocence. Malaysia's King recently granted Najib permission to serve his sentence under house arrest, marking his second royal pardon regarding his conviction.
The Malaysian Prisons Department and the Home Affairs Ministry are awaiting formal written confirmation of the pardon before taking any further steps. According to Malaysia's legal framework, the Home Affairs Minister holds the authority to declare any premises as a prison, which could subsequently be utilized to designate Najib's residence as the location to serve his sentence.
Najib's lawyers reported that he has been "deeply moved" by the public support he has received. Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, the President of Najib’s UMNO party, announced on Friday that a fundraising effort would be initiated among party members and supporters to assist Najib in paying the fine. By Saturday noon, the party had reportedly amassed nearly 1 million ringgit through local media reports.
The multi-party government led by the current Prime Minister, Anwar Ibrahim, comprising the Democratic Action Party (DAP) and Najib’s UMNO, has been grappling with increasing divisions over the government's handling of corruption concerns.
Written by urgent.news from Business Recorder's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
