Court issues new order after attorney-general sought review of royal pardon
PUBLISHED : 10 Nov 2026 at 20:52
KUALA LUMPUR – Former prime minister Najib Razak was seen arriving at his home to start house arrest after leaving jail on Tuesday.
A vehicle with a police escort was seen approaching Najib’s residence in the Malaysian capital with the former premier seen inside.
Malaysia’s High Court cleared the way for the move after the country’s attorney-general last week called for a review of a royal pardon that allowed Najib to serve his sentence at home.
Najib, 73, was expected be be transferred from jail last Friday after a fine was paid as a condition of the pardon, but the transfer was halted after a last-minute intervention by the attorney-general.
Najib, who served as prime minister from 2009 to 2018, was found guilty of corruption in relation to the embezzlement of billions of dollars tied to 1Malaysia Development Berhad, the state investment fund he co-founded while in power. He has consistently denied wrongdoing.
The court ordered on Tuesday that Najib could start house arrest, effective immediately, the Bernama news agency reported. (Story continues below)
Former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak is escorted to the Kuala Lumpur Court Complex on Tuesday, prior to a new order being issued to have him transferred from prison to a home to serve his corruption sentence. (Photo: Reuters)
Interpretation issues
On Friday, the attorney-general suspended the implementation of the house arrest, saying questions had arisen over the legal interpretation of King Sultan Ibrahim’s pardon and an earlier court order allowing Najib to leave jail.
But the king warned on Saturday that any attempt to challenge his order could amount to defying a pardon that was “clear, explicit and without any ambiguity”.
One of Malaysia’s most influential and divisive politicians, Najib has repeatedly denied wrongdoing in the 1MDB case and insists he was made the scapegoat for the complex, globe-spanning scheme that siphoned away as much as $4.5 billion, according to US investigators.
More than $1 billion allegedly ended up in accounts linked to Najib, prosecutors have said.
He was also convicted of abuse of power and money laundering in a separate 1MDB-related case in December and sentenced to 15 years in prison with fines of $2.8 billion. He has appealed that ruling.
