Malaysia's former Prime Minister Najib Razak has returned to his Kuala Lumpur residence to serve the remainder of his corruption sentence under house arrest, following a high court ruling on Tuesday. The 73-year-old was driven from prison in an SUV, accompanied by a heavily armed police convoy, and arrived late at night to a large media gathering outside his home.
End of a Four-Year Prison Term
Najib's release marks the conclusion of a four-year prison stint after his conviction for embezzling billions from the country's sovereign wealth fund, 1MDB. The scandal, which erupted a decade ago, toppled his government and drew global attention, implicating figures from Malaysia to Goldman Sachs and Hollywood.
Investigators estimate that $4.5 billion was diverted from the state fund, which Najib co-founded, into private accounts, including his own. Prosecutors allege that over $1 billion flowed into accounts linked to Najib. His legal team maintains he was misled by advisers, notably financier Jho Low, who denies wrongdoing and remains at large.
Legal and Political Repercussions
Najib's mansion, located in one of Kuala Lumpur's most exclusive neighborhoods, was officially designated a federal prison before his return. Critics argue that his release undermines anti-corruption efforts and question its legal foundation, noting that Malaysian law does not explicitly provide for house arrest.
Najib, who served as prime minister from 2009 to 2018, has consistently denied wrongdoing but was convicted in two separate trials. In the first trial, he received a 12-year sentence in 2020 and was imprisoned in 2022; the term was later halved on appeal. In September, the King of Malaysia granted him a conditional pardon, allowing him to serve the remaining two years at home.
The transfer to his residence was initially scheduled for Friday but was delayed after the attorney general sought clarification of the royal decree. On Tuesday, the high court ruled that the house arrest was effective immediately. As part of the pardon terms, Najib's party paid a $12 million fine.
He was convicted of abuse of power, money laundering, and breach of trust over 42 million ringgit ($10 million) transferred from SRC International, a former 1MDB unit, into his private accounts. Najib is also appealing a 15-year prison sentence handed down in December 2025 for misappropriating nearly 2.3 billion ringgit ($569 million) from 1MDB. He is expected to begin serving that sentence after his house arrest ends, likely in August 2028.
