Malaysia: Ex-leader Najib seeks to leave prison for house arrest

Malaysia's graft-convicted former Prime Minister Najib Razak is set to leave prison to sit out the remainder of a six-year sentence under house arrest, after his political party paid a 50 million ringgit ($12.3 million, €11 million) fine.

Najib's party, United Malays National Organization (UMNO), collected sufficient funds through a donation drive, Asyraf Wajid Dusuki, the party secretary-general, said in a statement on Friday.

Although it was not immediately clear when Najib would be officially allowed to leave prison, the AFP news agency said a report saw him in a car driving away on Friday. Police were stationed at his house in Kuala Lumpur early Friday and the road leading to his home was blocked.

However, a later statement from Malaysia's attorney general's office relayed by Reuters seemed to cast the issue back into doubt. It said that Najib's transfer had been temporarily suspended, saying that some legal questions regarding the conditions of his royal pardon still needed clarifying.

For now, it said, the former PM's current detention status would be maintained.

Billions stolen from state funds

Najib, 73, has been serving a six-year prison sentence for his role in the 1MDB corruption scandal, named after 1Malaysia Development Berhad, a state investment fund he co-founded while serving as prime minister from 2009 to 2018.

In 2020, Najib was originally sentenced to 12 years in prison for abuse of power, criminal breach of trust and money laundering involving $10.3 million funneled into his bank accounts. He began his sentence in 2022.

Malaysia's king, Sultan Ibrahim, granted Najib a rare royal clemency in September, subject to the payment of 50 million Malaysian ringgit, allowing him to serve the rest of his sentence under house arrest. After collecting donations from supporters, Najib's party paid the fine this week.

Second prison sentence awaiting

The house arrest applies only to his reduced six-year sentence in the first trial.

It doesn't cover a separate 15-year prison sentence imposed in December 2025 for corruption and money laundering in a second trial tied to the 1MDB scandal.

Najib is appealing that conviction, which saw him fined 11.4 billion ringgit.

If he fails to win the appeal, he could go back to prison after August 23, 2028.

The scandal sparked national outrage in Malaysia and led to the 2018 election defeat of Najib's party United Malays National Organization (UNMO), which governed the country since independence from Britain in 1957.

In spite of the embezzlement, Najib still enjoys political support and is influential in this party, which is part of the government that came to power in 2022.