Jailed former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak has filed an appeal against his conviction last week on corruption charges related to the multibillion-dollar 1MDB scandal, which saw him sentenced to an additional 15 years in prison, his lawyer said on Tuesday.
Najib, 72, has been in jail since 2022 on corruption offences linked to allegations that about US$4.5 billion was stolen from 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), a state fund he co-founded while serving as prime minister in 2009.
US and Malaysian investigators have said more than US$1 billion of the misappropriated funds made their way into accounts linked to Najib, who has consistently denied wrongdoing.
Last Friday, Najib was found guilty of four charges of abuse of power and 21 counts of money laundering for illegally receiving about 2.3 billion ringgit (US$567 million) originating from 1MDB, in the biggest trial he has faced.
He was sentenced to 15 years in prison and slapped with a record fine of nearly US$3 billion. The court ordered Najib to begin serving the additional sentence after his current six-year jail term ends in 2028, though the term may be reduced by one-third for good behaviour.
Najib’s lawyer Muhammad Farhan Shafee confirmed in a brief text message that an appeal had been filed on Monday night against both the verdict and the sentence.
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