Malaysia’s Najib accuses US of sabotaging his 1MDB defence

In a bombshell courtroom revelation, the ex-PM claims US collusion with Malaysia’s political opposition to undermine his defence

Reading Time:3 minutes

Malaysia’s former Prime Minister Najib Razak is escorted by police officers at Kuala Lumpur High Court in April. Photo: EPA-EFE

Published: 2:52pm, 9 Dec 2024Updated: 6:42pm, 9 Dec 2024

Jailed former Malaysian leader Najib Razak claimed on Monday that he was the victim of a US-backed conspiracy, orchestrated in collusion with Malaysia’s political opposition to implicate him in the multibillion-dollar 1MDB scandal

The ex-prime minister, already serving a six-year prison term for corruption related to the plunder of the sovereign wealth fund, faces multiple other cases linked to the financial scandal that resulted in his defeat in the 2018 elections.

Testifying in his own defence on Monday against 25 charges of money laundering and abuse of power linked to the embezzlement of 2.27 billion ringgit (US$510.4 million) from 1MDB, Najib told Kuala Lumpur’s High Court that he had “taken every possible step” to gather evidence to clear his name.

He said this effort had included securing a US court order to subpoena Goldman Sachs and Tim Leissner, the bank’s former Southeast Asia chief, who was implicated in the issuance of US$6.5 billion in bonds on behalf of 1MDB in 2012 and 2013.

11:20

The legacy of Malaysia’s 1MDB scandal on politics and corruption-fighting

However, Najib contended that the US government had intervened to obstruct his efforts to present evidence that he claims would dismiss the “wild allegations” raised in the civil forfeiture actions, including the Justice Department’s 2016 suit tied to the film The Wolf of Wall Street.