After his appeal was denied, former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak has been sent to prison to begin serving a 12-year term.
The charges against the 69-year-old pertain to a corruption scandal involving the state-owned investment fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB).
In July 2020, he was found guilty, but he was free on bail pending the appeal.
In addition, the court refused Najib’s request to have his sentence delayed. He has persistently denied any wrongdoing.
In 2020, he was found guilty on seven counts related to the transfer of 42 million ringgit ($9.4 million; £8 million) from SRC International, a former company of 1MDB, into his accounts.
He was given a 12-year prison term and a 210m ringgit ($46.8m; £39.9m) fine.
The defense team stated that Najib was misled into believing that the money in his accounts was a gift from the Saudi royal family rather than stolen from a public fund.
In addition, they asserted that he was misled by financial advisers, specifically fugitive financier Jho Low, who has been prosecuted in both the United States and Malaysia but maintains his innocence.
Najib’s attorney demanded the dismissal of Chief Justice Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat from the panel presiding over the case on Tuesday, in what was perceived as an attempt to delay a final judgment.
They asserted she could be biassed due to her husband’s 2018 Facebook post that was critical of Najib.
However, the chief judge denied the appeal, stating that the position existed before Najib was charged.
In her ruling, the chief justice stated that the five-judge panel unanimously determined that Najib’s conviction on all seven counts was secure and that the appeal was “without merit.”
She stated, “The defense is so inherently contradictory and implausible that it has failed to cast reasonable doubt on the case.”
The allegations addressed on Tuesday represent merely the first of five 1MDB-related trials.
Rosmah Mansor, Najib’s wife, has pleaded not guilty to separate money-laundering and tax fraud accusations relating to a solar hybrid project. The verdict is expected from the High Court on September 1.
