⁍ Former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak was found guilty on all seven corruption charges in his first trial.
⁍ The landmark case has been widely seen as a test for the country’s efforts to stamp out corruption.
⁍ Najib faced seven charges of criminal breach of trust, money laundering and abuse of power.
⁍ Each of the charges carry hefty fines and jail terms of up to 15 or 20 years.
– Former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak was found guilty Tuesday in his first trial linked to a multi-billion dollar scandal at the state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB). Najib faced seven charges of criminal breach of trust, money laundering, and abuse of power for allegedly illegally receiving nearly $10 million from former 1MDB unit SRC International. Each of the charges carry hefty fines and jail terms of up to 15 or 20 years, reports Reuters. Najib’s lawyers are seeking a delay in sentencing. The former prime minister, who was voted out in a historic 2018 election, still faces multiple criminal charges over allegations that $4.5 billion was stolen from 1MDB. Prosecutors allege more than $1 billion of the funds made its way into his personal accounts. Najib’s lawyers say he was misled by Malaysian financier Jho Low and other 1MDB officials into believing that the funds banked into his accounts were donated by the Saudi royal family, rather than misappropriated from SRC as prosecutors have alleged. Low denies wrongdoing. Allegations of corruption over 1MDB have hung over Najib for more than five years. But the criminal charges came only after his defeat in the 2018 election when his successor Mahathir Mohamad reopened investigations. The closely-watched case is seen as a test of Malaysia’s efforts to root out corruption, after Najib’s party was returned to power in February as part of an alliance led by Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin. The guilty verdict could boost Muhyiddin’s credibility with the public, but weaken his coalition, which counts Najib’s United Malays National Organization, and potentially trigger snap polls.
Source: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-malaysia-politics-najib/malaysias-najib-failed-to-raise-reasonable-doubt-on-abuse-of-power-charge-judge-idUSKCN24T042