Malaysia's ex-PM hit with fresh charges linked to 1MDB scandal

Malaysian prosecutors on Thursday charged former Prime Minister Najib Razak with abuse of power and money laundering over hundreds of millions of dollars of funds received in his personal bank account.

They charged Najib with four counts of abuse of power regarding an amount of $556.23 million in state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (or 1MDB).

Prosecutors also charged him with 21 counts of money laundering.

Najib pleaded not guilty to all 25 charges. 

Political vengeance?

The former prime minister has called the case political vengeance.

Najib was earlier charged with multiple counts of criminal breach of trust, corruption and money laundering over the scandal at the 1MDB fund, just months after his shocking electoral defeat.

Najib set up 1MDB when he took power in 2009 to promote economic development, but the fund amassed billions in debts and is being investigated in the US and several other countries for alleged cross-border embezzlement and money laundering.

The 1MDB scandal first broke in 2015 when leaked documents showed that $681 million were transferred into Najib's bank account, leading to massive street rallies calling on him to resign.

Najib fired critics in his government, including a deputy prime minister and the attorney-general, and muzzled the media to try to survive the fallout.

A new attorney-general cleared Najib in January 2016, saying it was a political donation from Saudi Arabia's royal family and most of it had been returned – an explanation that was met with widespread scepticism.

Public outrage

US investigators say Najib's associates stole and laundered $4.5 billion from the fund, some of which landed in Najib's bank account.

Public anger over the 1MDB scandal eventually led to the ouster of Najib's long-time governing coalition in May 9 polls, ushering in the first change of power in Malaysia, since independence from Britain in 1957.