Malaysian ex-PM Najib asks court for stay of 15-year jail sentence

Jailed former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak has asked a court to suspend a 15-year prison sentence imposed on him for his involvement in a multibillion-dollar corruption scandal, his lawyer said on Friday, a week after he received a royal pardon on a separate conviction.

Najib, 73, has been in jail since 2022 after being found guilty of graft and money laundering linked to the theft of billions of dollars from 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), a state fund he co-founded while in office. He has consistently denied wrongdoing.

Malaysia's King Sultan Ibrahim last week granted a conditional pardon to Najib, allowing him to serve the remainder of his original sentence under house arrest until his expected release date in August 2028, provided he pays a 50 million ringgit ($12.27 million) fine.

But Najib also faces an additional 15 years in jail after he was found guilty in December last year in a separate case linked to corruption at 1MDB - a sentence that would begin after his stint in house arrest ends.

The Kuala Lumpur High Court will decide on October 14 on whether to grant Najib's request to stay that sentence pending an appeal against the conviction, his lawyer Muhammad Shafee Abdullah told reporters.

If Najib pays the fine and is granted the stay, "there is a good chance he is released on the same day," Muhammad Shafee said.

However, the terms setting out the house arrest order remained unclear as Najib's legal team has yet to receive official documents confirming the royal pardon, he added.

Muhammad Shafee reiterated that Najib has so far been unable to pay the fine, with many of his assets still frozen by the government.

Najib's party, the United Malays National Organisation, has launched a fundraising drive for supporters to secure the ex-premier's release.

US and Malaysian investigators have said at least $4.5 billion was stolen from 1MDB, with about $1 billion making its way into accounts linked to Najib.

Najib has apologised for mishandling the scandal, but maintains his innocence, saying he was misled by others about the source of the funds flowing into his accounts.