A Malaysian High Court has ruled against former Prime Minister Najib Razak, mandating that he pays $1.3 billion to SRC International, previously linked to the scandal-ridden 1MDB state fund, as reported by Bernama.
Judge Ahmad Fairuz Zainol Abidin found Najib guilty of breaching fiduciary duties by abusing his office to misappropriate SRC funds, a ruling SRC’s lawyer, Lim Chee Wee, confirmed. Najib plans to appeal, according to his lawyer Muhammad Shafee Abdullah. Najib has been incarcerated since August 2022 for corruption and money laundering linked to similar offenses.
Investigations by Malaysian and U.S. authorities allege that a staggering $4.5 billion was embezzled from 1MDB, which Najib established in 2009. Despite receiving additional sentences in recent years, Najib maintains his innocence and is challenging these decisions.