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1MDB trial: Najib Razak’s first case ends, verdict due on July 28
- The trial involves seven of 42 criminal charges the former premier is facing over his alleged role in the looting of Malaysia’s 1MDB state fund
- Prosecutors say SRC International, a 1MDB subsidiary, was on the receiving end of some US$9.8 million of misappropriated funds
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The first of Najib Razak’s five corruption trials wrapped up on Friday, with lawyers of Malaysia’s former prime minister making the final arguments that he had been duped by the fugitive billionaire Jho Low and other “rogue bankers”.
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The trial judge, Justice Mohd Nazlan Ghazali, is now expected to analyse some 2,000 pages of submissions before coming to a verdict on July 28.
The case involves seven of the 42 criminal charges Najib is facing over his alleged role in the looting of some US$4.5 billion from the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) state fund during his tenure as prime minister from 2009 to 2018.
The case that ended on Friday is referred to as the “SRC International trial”, referencing the former 1MDB subsidiary that prosecutors say was on the receiving end of some 42 million ringgit (US$9.8 million) of misappropriated funds.
The milestone in the case comes amid unprecedented political turmoil in the country that has seen the multiracial Pakatan Harapan government that toppled Najib on an anti-corruption campaign now turfed out of power. In its place, Najib’s Malay nationalist allies led by the new Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin are now back in office.
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