KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court today dismissed Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak’s application to suspend his 15-year prison sentence and RM11.4 billion fine in the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) case, ruling that no special circumstances justified the request.
Judge Noor Ruwena Md Nurdin said the defence had failed to meet the legal threshold for a stay of execution, stressing that the seriousness of the offences and public interest were key considerations.
She agreed with the prosecution that the gravity of the offences warranted greater weight, noting that Najib was no longer a first-time offender when he was convicted in the related 1MDB case.
On the former prime minister’s health concerns, the judge said the medical report presented to the court indicated that his medical needs were being adequately addressed by the government, hospitals and medical specialists. Therefore, the issues raised did not meet the requirements for special circumstances.
Following the ruling, Najib’s lead counsel Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah told the court that the defence intended to file a fresh application for a stay of execution at the Court of Appeal after obtaining the full grounds of judgment.
Muhammad Shafee said the defence had not sought a stay immediately after Najib’s conviction in December last year because he was already serving a prison sentence in the SRC International Sdn Bhd case.
He explained that the decision was intended to preserve the possibility of Najib benefiting from concurrent sentences if the appellate court ruled in his favour. The lawyer added that Najib’s age and health condition should also be considered.
However, deputy public prosecutor Datuk Ahmad Akram Gharib argued that Najib had failed to establish exceptional circumstances warranting a suspension of the sentence pending appeal.
He said granting the application would undermine the enforcement of a valid conviction, potentially weaken public confidence in the justice system and delay the final resolution of a case that took seven years from charge to conviction.
Ahmad Akram added that the seriousness of the offences, Najib’s previous convictions and the wider public interest supported the dismissal of the application.
On Dec 26 last year, the High Court sentenced Najib to 15 years’ imprisonment and imposed a collective fine of RM11.4 billion for abuse of power in the 1MDB case. He filed a notice of appeal against the decision on Dec 29 but did not initially apply for a stay of execution.
Najib received 15 years’ imprisonment for each abuse-of-power charge, alongside the collective fine, with a default sentence of 40 years’ imprisonment if the fine is not paid. He was also sentenced to five years’ imprisonment for each of the 21 money laundering charges, without an additional fine.
The court ordered all prison terms within the case to run concurrently, resulting in an effective 15-year sentence.
The sentence is to begin after Najib completes his existing six-year jail term in the SRC International case, which is scheduled to end on Aug 23, 2028.
The report also stated that last month, His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, King of Malaysia, granted Najib a conditional pardon allowing him to serve the remainder of his sentence under house arrest until Aug 23, 2028, subject to payment of a RM50 million fine.
-THESUN
