Malaysia court rejects Najib’s bid to serve sentence under house arrest 

A court in Malaysia has ‍dismissed jailed ‍former Prime Minister Najib Razak’s bid to serve the remainder of his sentence for corruption at home, saying a royal document allowing the ⁠move was invalid as it was not ​made according to procedure.

The ruling on Monday dealt another blow to Najib, who has been imprisoned since August 2022 for his role in the multi-billion dollar 1MDB scandal.

Najib has sought to compel Malaysian authorities to ‍confirm the ⁠existence of and execute a royal order that he said was issued last year as part of a pardon by the then-king, entitling him to serve the remainder of his sentence at ​home.

Kuala Lumpur High Court ‌judge Alice Loke said on Monday that the existence of the order was not in dispute, but the former king should ‌have consulted the country’s pardons board before making the order ‌to allow Najib house arrest.

The ⁠decision to deny him house arrest comes just days before Najib faces his biggest trial in the 1MDB ‌scandal, with another court set to deliver its judgement on Friday.

Najib has denied all of ‍the charges brought against him.

More soon…