Malaysian court orders ex-premier to pay $1.8B to state-owned company for breach of fiduciary duty

ISTANBUL

A Malaysian court on Tuesday ordered former Prime Minister Najib Razak to pay 4.77 billion ringgit (about $1.8 billion) to the government-owned company, SRC International, over abuse of power, acting in bad faith, and breach of fiduciary duty.

The High Court found Najib liable for $1.18 billion in losses suffered by the company, along with an additional $120 million in damages, after ruling he had orchestrated the misappropriation of funds into his personal bank account, according to Free Malaysia Today.

The costs will be determined at a later date.

The judge has suspended the judgment for 14 days to allow Najib to file a formal application for a stay of execution pending an appeal.

Najib was sentenced to 15 years in prison and imposed a fine last year after being found guilty on four charges of abusing his power and 21 counts of money laundering.

He has faced several trials in connection with the state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) scandal, as both Malaysian and US authorities allege that around $4.5 billion was embezzled from the state fund in a wide-ranging international scheme from 2009 to 2014. SRC International was established in 2011 as a subsidiary of 1MDB.

Najib, who has served two terms as premier since 2009, is currently serving his sentence in Kajang Prison in Selangor state.

ISTANBUL

The costs will be determined at a later date.

The judge has suspended the judgment for 14 days to allow Najib to file a formal application for a stay of execution pending an appeal.

Najib was sentenced to 15 years in prison and imposed a fine last year after being found guilty on four charges of abusing his power and 21 counts of money laundering.

Najib, who has served two terms as premier since 2009, is currently serving his sentence in Kajang Prison in Selangor state.