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Jailed former Malaysia PM Najib transferred to rehabilitation hospital: Prisons department

Jailed former Malaysia PM Najib transferred to rehabilitation hospital: Prisons department

Former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, center, wearing a face mask, waves as he arrives at Court of Appeal in Putrajaya, Malaysia, Tuesday, Aug. 23, 2022. Najib was sentenced to 12 years in jail by a high court in July 2020, after being found guilty of abuse of power, criminal breach of trust and money laundering for illegally receiving 42 million ringgit ($9.4 million) from SRC International, a former unit of 1MDB. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)

KUALA LUMPUR: Former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak, who last month started serving a prison sentence for his graft conviction, is currently being treated at the Cheras Rehabilitation Hospital (HRC) in Kuala Lumpur, said the Prisons Department.

The department said the Kuala Lumpur High Court had on Sep 12 ordered that Najib be taken to the hospital for a medical checkup after it was notified of the health issues he was facing.

It said that in line with Section 37 of the Prisons Act and provisions under this act, as well the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for Treatment of Prisoners (the Nelson Mandela Rules), Najib was sent to the Kuala Lumpur Hospital (HKL) for medical attention.

“On Sep 19, HKL referred Najib to HRC for further treatment and monitoring until now,” the Prisons Department said in a statement on Wednesday (Sep 21). 

It said that Najib will be sent back to Kajang Prison once the medical specialists in either HRC or HKL give the clearance. 

The department added that it is responsible for the health of prisoners, including providing treatment and medication recommended by government health officials. 

According to the Malaysian Health Ministry, the HRC is the first hospital in Southeast Asia that provides comprehensive rehabilitation medicine services. It is equipped with rehabilitation gymnasium and hydrotherapy pools. 

On Aug 23, the Federal Court dismissed Najib's appeal to overturn a 12-year-jail term and RM210 million (US$46 million) fine over seven charges in the case involving funds from SRC International, a former unit of 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB).

The charges against Najib, who served as prime minister from 2009 to 2018, involved the transfer of RM42 million from SRC International into his personal bank accounts in 2014 and 2015.

He was found guilty on three counts of criminal breach of trust, three counts of money laundering and one count of abuse of power by the High Court in July 2020.

The conviction and sentence was upheld by the Court of Appeal on Dec 8, 2021. Najib later filed a petition of appeal to the Federal Court on Apr 25 this year.

He began serving his sentence at the Kajang Prison in Selangor immediately on Aug 23 after the Federal Court decision.

On Sep 12, Najib’s ongoing 1MDB trial was cut short when the High Court was told that the former prime minister’s health condition was “quite bad” and needed medical attention.

The prosecution team told the High Court judge that Najib needed to be sent to hospital for medical attention as the high blood pressure medication he was taking had given him adverse effects.

The former prime minister was earlier treated for his stomach ulcer, his daughter said on Instagram. 

The ongoing 1MDB trial is Najib’s second corruption case. He was accused of 25 charges of money laundering and abuse of power related to 1MDB funds totalling RM2.3 billion.

The trial is scheduled to resume next Monday. 

NAJIB AND SON SUCCEED IN STAY BID OVER UNPAID INCOME TAX

At the Federal Court on Wednesday, Najib and his son Mohd Nazifuddin managed to obtain an order to stay the execution of a summary judgment against them over unpaid income tax amounting to more than RM1.7 billion, Bernama reported. 

A three-member bench led by Chief Justice Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat granted the order. 

"The order to stay the execution of the summary judgment is allowed pending the disposal of the appeals by both the appellants at the Federal Court," Tengku Maimun was quoted as saying during the proceeding conducted via video conference. 

Lawyer Muhammad Farhan Muhammad Shafee, representing Najib and his son, had earlier told the court that the Inland Revenue Board (IRB) did not object to the applications by his clients.

In 2020, two separate High Courts allowed the IRB's applications to enter a summary judgment to recover tax arrears of RM1.69 billion from Najib and RM37.6 million from Mohd Nazifuddin for the period between 2011 and 2017.

A summary judgment is obtained when the court decides on a case through written submissions without a full trial and without calling witnesses, according to Bernama. 

In May this year, the Federal Court allowed Najib and Mohd Nazifuddin to proceed with their appeal against the High Courts' decision. 

In September last year, both of them failed in their appeal at the Court of Appeal to set aside the two courts’ summary judgment against them, the Bernama report added.

Source: CNA/rv(tx)

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