Malaysia’s jailed ex-leader Najib Razak will begin his defense this week against graft charges tied to more than $500 million in alleged bribes, and argue to serve the rest of his sentence under house arrest.
The former prime minister, already serving a six-year jail term for corruption related to the plunder of sovereign wealth fund 1MDB, faces several other cases linked to the financial scandal that led to his defeat in 2018 elections.
At the High Court on Monday, the 71-year-old will start his defence against four counts of abuse of power linked to 2.27 billion ringgit ($510 million) in alleged bribes and 21 counts of money laundering.
The case involves Tanore Finance Corp, which US authorities have said was used to siphon money from 1MDB.
Najib issued an apology in October that the 1MDB scandal happened during his tenure, but maintained he had no knowledge of illegal transfers from the now-defunct state fund.
If convicted, Najib faces hefty fines and sentences of up to 20 years for each count of abuse of power.
Najib’s lead lawyer, Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, has said they were “more determined” than ever to fight the case.
Separately, the Court of Appeal will on Thursday hear Najib’s challenge against a lower court’s refusal to hear his request for house arrest.
His application for a judicial review centres on the purported existence of an order by the former king, granting him permission to serve the rest of his sentence at home.
Najib asked the court to compel the government to confirm the royal decree’s existence and to implement its order.
But the court ruled in July that affidavits supporting Najib’s claim were inadmissible as evidence, because they were hearsay.
The supposed document has not been made public and there has been no comment from the former king, whose term in the largely ceremonial role ended in January.
If the appeals court rules in Najib’s favour, the case will go back to the lower court.
