Kuala Lumpur: Malaysia’s Court of Appeal allowed on Monday former Prime Minister Najib Razak, imprisoned for corruption, to pursue a legal bid to serve his remaining sentence under house arrest. In a 2-1 decision, the court permitted Najib to file an appeal against the dismissal of his request to compel the government to produce a purported ‘addendum order’ from the previous king, Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah, which would potentially allow him to serve his sentence at home.
According to Anadolu Agency, the Kuala Lumpur High Court had previously dismissed Najib’s request in July last year, which aimed to order the government to verify the existence of the royal order. Najib, aged 70, was convicted in 2020 for criminal breach of trust and abuse of power related to the illegal receipt of funds from 1Malaysia Development Berhad, a state fund. However, a pardon board reduced his original 12-year sentence by half in February 2024 and also lessened his fine.