Malaysia's Appeal Court upheld a first-instance 12-year prison sentence against former Prime Minister Najib Razak in case of laundering of money from 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) state fund, media reported on Wednesday
BANGKOK (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 08th December, 2021) Malaysia's Appeal Court upheld a first-instance 12-year prison sentence against former Prime Minister Najib Razak in case of laundering of money from 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) state fund, media reported on Wednesday.
The court ruled to approve the verdict of the first instance, confirming the fact that three amounts totaling $9.9 million, had been transferred to Najib's accounts from the accounts of the SRC International company financed by 1MDB.
"All in all, we find the conviction safe. We dismiss the appeal... and affirm the conviction by the High Court on all seven charges," court judge Abdul Karim Abdul Jalil said as quoted by the Star newspaper.
In 2020, the first instance court in Malaysia sentenced 68-year-old Najib Razak to 12 years in prison on corruption charges in a series of criminal cases related to the disappearance of around a total of $4.5 billion from the 1MDB fund. Apart from Najib, a list of main defendants included his close assistants, relatives and two senior Goldman bankers.
The 1MDB embezzlement case was being investigated simultaneously in Malaysia, Singapore, the US, Switzerland and several other countries. The international investigation has found that the money stolen from the fund was spent on luxury goods and land in different countries of the world. It was also invested in shares on stock exchanges and in the US film industry.
In addition, the 1MDB embezzlement scandal was one of the main reasons for the failure of the former prime minister's party � the United Malays National Organization � in the 2018 general elections.
