From BBC News · · 1m 20s
Malaysia's Najib Razak leaves jail for house arrest
The disgraced former PM convicted of embezzling billions from a sovereign wealth fund begins serving his remaining sentence at home after a royal pardon.
In brief
The disgraced former PM convicted of embezzling billions from a sovereign wealth fund begins serving his remaining sentence at home after a royal pardon. Najib Razak, Malaysia's former prime minister, left prison to serve the rest of his corruption sentence under house arrest after a royal pardon, drawing criticism…
Najib leaves prison for home confinement
Malaysia's former Prime Minister Najib Razak, 73, arrived at his Kuala Lumpur mansion late Tuesday night to begin house arrest after four years in prison for corruption.
The 1MDB embezzlement scandal
Investigators estimated four point five billion dollars was siphoned from the state-owned wealth fund 1MDB, which Najib co-founded. More than one billion dollars allegedly ended up in accounts linked to Najib.
Conviction and sentence reduction
Najib was convicted at two separate trials. In 2020 he was sentenced to twelve years in prison, later halved on appeal. In September, the King of Malaysia granted him a conditional pardon.
Critics question legal basis for release
Critics said his release from jail undermined efforts to fight corruption and questioned its legal basis, saying Malaysian law made no provision for house arrest.
Second conviction and future sentence
Najib is appealing a fifteen-year prison sentence from a December 2025 trial involving nearly two point three billion Malaysian ringgit from 1MDB.
The takeaway
Najib Razak, Malaysia's former prime minister, left prison to serve the rest of his corruption sentence under house arrest after a royal pardon, drawing criticism that it undermines anti-corruption efforts.
