Judge: No Evidence Of Arab Donors, Najib Opened The Door To 1MDB Fund Diversion

KUALA LUMPUR, June 16 (Bernama) -- There was no evidence that Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak had ever met, communicated with, or corresponded with the purported Arab donors, yet he continued to utilise the funds despite being aware of concerns over their origins, says Judge Datuk Collin Lawrence Sequerah

In sentencing the former prime minister to 15 years' imprisonment in the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) case, the trial judge, who is now a Federal Court judge, held that Najib had failed to adduce any evidence of direct communication with the purported Arab donors and admitted that the four “donation letters” did not originate directly from them.

He further said that Najib had also made no attempt to verify the authenticity of the letters or even the existence of the alleged donors.

“Finally, the accused also admitted that the matter of the Arab donations was not disclosed in any official manner or form to the Cabinet,” the judge said in his 810-page grounds of judgment released today.

He said the overall circumstances led to the irresistible inference that the monies originated from the purported joint venture (JV) between 1MDB and PetroSaudi International.

Addressing the defence's argument that there was no causal link between Najib's actions and the gratification he received, and that the funds came from independent commercial transactions following the JV, Justice Sequerah found otherwise.

He noted that evidence showed Najib had approved the JV, intervened in the approval process through a telephone call with 1MDB’s chairman Tan Sri Mohd Bakke Salleh, and subsequently endorsed Cabinet papers that were essential preconditions for the release of US$1 billion from 1MDB.

“It is evident that had it not been for his authority as Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, the transfers of these funds would not have taken place.

“So, contrary to what the defence had contended, the actions of the accused were the proximate cause of the misappropriation of funds, and there was a causal connection that enabled these funds to be misappropriated and channelled into his personal accounts,” he said.

The judge also held that the scale of the misappropriation in the 1MDB case, the enduring financial burden borne by the Government and the difficulty in tracing all proceeds due to the manner in which the funds were moved and dissipated, an order under Section 55(2) Anti-Money Laundering and Anti-Terrorism Financing Act 2001 (AMLATFA) is not only appropriate but necessary in the interests of justice and public interest.

He said the scale of the financial scandal reverberated globally and left the country in the difficult position of continuing to bear its financial burden.

Public abhorrence at the manner in which the offences were committed, which involved a breach of trust by the holder of the country’s highest public office, is a highly relevant consideration, said the judge.

“In light of these considerations and also the enormous sums of money siphoned off and to date remain unrecoverable, this court agrees with the submission of the prosecution that the provisions of 55(2) AMLATFA ought to be given effect to,” he added.

On Dec 26, 2025, Justice Sequerah sentenced Najib, 72, to 15 years in jail and imposed a total fine of RM11.4 billion after finding him guilty on four counts of abuse of power and 21 counts of money laundering involving RM2.3 billion in funds linked to 1MDB.

-- BERNAMA