Former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak arrived at his home in Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday, November 10, 2026, to serve the rest of his graft sentence under house arrest after a royal pardon. The move marks a major change for the former leader, who was jailed in August 2022.
According to the South China Morning Post, Najib returned to his house on Jalan Langgak Duta at about 9.30pm, after the High Court cleared the way for his release from jail. DW reported that Najib, 73, reached his residence in a convoy escorted by police and prison vehicles, with supporters waiting outside.
DW reported that King Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar granted Najib a conditional pardon in September. It allows him to finish a reduced six-year sentence at home once a court-imposed fine was paid. The palace said the king’s pardon was clear, explicit and without any ambiguity, and that challenging it would amount to defying the royal order.
According to The Hindu, Najib’s party, UMNO, paid the fine of 50 million ringgit ($12.3 million) on Friday. Najib left prison that day but was returned hours later after the attorney general sought legal clarification.
According to The Hindu, house arrest runs until August 23, 2028, and does not cover a separate 15-year sentence for corruption and money laundering. Najib is appealing that sentence.
DW reported that Transport Minister Anthony Loke resigned in protest against the decision to let Najib serve his sentence under house arrest. This account comes only from DW, and no statement from Loke is included in the sources.
Najib was jailed in August 2022 after the Kuala Lumpur High Court upheld his graft conviction linked to the 1MDB fund looting. He served as prime minister from 2009 to 2018 and has denied wrongdoing. DW reported that US investigators estimated $1 billion of the stolen 1MDB funds ended up in accounts linked to Najib.
Najib’s lawyer, Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, said house arrest is "still an imprisonment" because Najib cannot leave the house without special permission. He also called it "a final relief."
The accounts differ on the nature of the arrangement. The lawyer describes it as imprisonment, while the palace says the pardon is settled. The fine payment and the court order rest on the accounts of the lawyer and the party, without independent confirmation. The South China Morning Post material was only a headline and short excerpt, so its account of the house and Loke’s role is not fully available. No response from the attorney general or the government on the transfer is included in the sources, and the timing and conditions of the appeal are not stated.
Najib’s appeal against the 15-year sentence is pending. If it fails, he could return to prison after his house arrest ends in August 2028.
Sources
This article was written with AI assistance from the published reporting listed above. It is part of the World Brief daily news podcast.