Malaysia’s King Sultan Ibrahim has granted a conditional pardon allowing former prime minister Najib Razak to serve the rest of his 1MDB-related sentence under house arrest until August 23, 2028. The move follows an earlier reduction of his 12-year term and fine, and is expected to intensify political tensions within Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s fragile coalition government.
Malaysia's King Sultan Ibrahim has agreed to allow jailed former prime minister Najib Razak to serve the remainder of his sentence under house arrest, the government said Friday, four years after his conviction over the multi-billion-dollar 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) scandal.
Najib, who served as prime minister from 2009 to 2018, was convicted of corruption over the embezzlement of billions of dollars linked to 1MDB, a state investment fund he co-founded while in office. He has consistently denied wrongdoing.
“King Sultan Ibrahim has consented to grant a conditional pardon to Najib Razak, allowing him to serve the remainder of his sentence under house arrest until August 23, 2028,” the prime minister's legal department said in a statement.
More than $1 billion allegedly ended up in accounts linked to Najib, 73, as part of a wider scheme that US investigators say siphoned as much as $4.5 billion from 1MDB.
Najib has maintained that he was made a scapegoat for a complex, global scheme that diverted funds from the state investment fund.
Friday's decision marks the second pardon granted to Najib.
In 2024, the previous king halved his 12-year prison sentence and reduced the fine imposed on him. Najib had argued that the decision also allowed him to serve the remainder of his sentence under house arrest, but a subsequent legal effort to secure the arrangement was unsuccessful.
Najib was also convicted in a separate 1MDB-related case in December last year. He was sentenced to 15 years in prison and fined $2.8 billion for abuse of power and money laundering. He has appealed that conviction.
Despite being jailed, Najib remains a divisive figure in Malaysian politics and retains influence within the once-dominant United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), which is part of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim's multi-party government.
Anwar's Pakatan Harapan alliance has opposed leniency for Najib, and the pardon could deepen divisions within his administration.
The next general election is not due until early 2028, although Anwar has said he could consider calling a snap election if tensions within the coalition deepen.
Pakatan Harapan joined forces with rival UMNO to form a government in 2022 after a general election produced a hung parliament. Relations have since become strained over a series of internal disagreements, including the treatment of Najib.
Anwar's public support has declined, while the prospects for his coalition in an early election remain uncertain. Pakatan was defeated twice in the past two months by UMNO's Barisan Nasional coalition in state elections.
Najib was also fined 50 million ringgit ($12.27 million) as a condition of his house arrest.
It was not immediately clear when Najib would leave prison, and his legal team did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Syaza Shukri, a political scientist at the International Islamic University Malaysia, said the pardon could hurt Anwar while strengthening Najib's UMNO ahead of the next election.
“The impact on Anwar and his government is really bad unless they can explain to the people the constitutionality and limitations they face,” she said.
“This is a big win for UMNO and they would feel more confident and emboldened going forward to get things going their way, looking like they will be the next government in waiting.”