Malaysia’s former Prime Minister Najib Razak has been granted royal clemency and may serve the remainder of his six-year prison sentence under house arrest, the prime minister’s legal department said Friday. Lawyers said King Sultan Ibrahim issued a “conditional pardon” covering the sentence until August 23, 2028.
The arrangement is subject to Najib paying 50 million Malaysian ringgit, equivalent to about $12.3 million or €10.7 million, according to the source. It was not immediately clear when Najib would leave prison, and his legal team had not commented on the decision.
Najib, 73, is serving the sentence imposed for his role in the 1Malaysia Development Berhad, or 1MDB, scandal. He was originally sentenced to 12 years in 2020 for abuse of power, criminal breach of trust and money laundering involving $10.3 million transferred into his bank accounts. He began serving the sentence in 2022, and the term was later reduced to six years.
The former leader also received a separate 15-year sentence in December 2025 after being convicted of abuse of power and money laundering in a case involving nearly $569 million allegedly misappropriated from 1MDB. That sentence is due to begin after his existing term, and Najib is appealing the conviction. The source said Friday’s announcement did not specify whether the house-arrest decision affects that separate case.
Najib previously benefited from royal clemency in 2024, when his first sentence was halved and his fine reduced. He had unsuccessfully sought house arrest at that time. Investigators have alleged that at least $4.5 billion was stolen and laundered through the 1MDB scandal, while Najib has denied wrongdoing and said he was made a scapegoat.
The scandal provoked widespread anger and contributed to the defeat of Najib’s United Malays National Organisation in the 2018 election, ending its long period in government. His latest clemency could prompt renewed debate in Malaysia about equal treatment under the law, the source reported.