UMNO pays $12.3 million to free former Malaysian PM from prison

Malaysia’s former Prime Minister Najib Razak is poised to exit prison and begin serving his sentence at his home in Kuala Lumpur after his political party paid a 50 million ringgit fine on Friday. The payment, equivalent to $12.3 million, fulfills a specific condition attached to a royal pardon granted by the country's king in September. Najib, who is 73 years old, has been incarcerated since August 2022 following an appellate court decision that upheld his conviction in a major graft trial.

Asyraf Wajid Dusuki, the secretary-general of the United Malays National Organization, confirmed that the party completed the payment at the High Court on Friday. Dusuki stated that the organization raised the required funds through a donation drive. This financial step allows Najib to serve the remainder of his reduced six-year term under house arrest until August 23, 2028.

The house arrest arrangement applies only to the sentence from his first trial, which stemmed from charges of abuse of power, criminal breach of trust, and money laundering. Investigators alleged that 42 million ringgit, or $10.3 million, was channeled from SRC International, a former unit of state investment fund 1MDB, into Najib’s personal bank accounts. The original 2020 verdict had called for a 12-year prison term and a 210 million ringgit fine. A January 2024 decision by the Pardons Board cut the prison time in half and lowered the fine to the amount now paid.

Najib’s legal situation remains complex because of a separate 15-year prison sentence imposed in December 2025. That conviction resulted from a second major trial involving corruption and money laundering tied to the same 1MDB scandal. He is currently appealing that verdict. If he loses the appeal, he could return to prison once his current house arrest sentence concludes. Police were stationed at his residence early Friday, and local media reported that the road leading to his home was blocked, though the exact timing of his transfer from the jail was not immediately clear.

The 1MDB scandal involved the looting of a multibillion-dollar state fund that Najib established shortly after taking office in 2009. Investigators said at least $4.5 billion was stolen and laundered through bank accounts in the United States and other countries. The funds were allegedly used to finance Hollywood movies and purchase luxury assets, including hotels, a yacht, art, and jewelry. The controversy over the fund’s mismanagement contributed to the historic 2018 election defeat of the ruling coalition that had governed Malaysia since independence in 1957.

Despite his conviction, Najib retains influence within his party, which is part of the government coalition that took power in 2022. The payment of the fine marks a procedural step in his clemency, but it does not erase the ongoing legal proceedings in his second trial.