International Desk: Former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak was sentenced to 12 years in jail on Tuesday after being found guilty in his first trial over the multi-billion-dollar 1MDB scandal, report agencies.
The Kuala Lumpur High Court also ordered him to pay a fine of 210 million ringgit ($49 million) after he was convicted of seven charges related to the looting of sovereign wealth fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad.
Billions of dollars were stolen from the investment vehicle and spent on everything from high-end real estate to pricey art, while investment bank Goldman Sachs also became embroiled in the scandal.
Anger at the looting played a large part in the shock loss of Najib's long-ruling coalition in elections in 2018, and he was arrested and hit with dozens of charges following his defeat.
The verdict was a test of Malaysia's rule of law. It comes about five months after Najib's scandal-plagued party returned to power as part of a coalition, a development observers had feared could affect the outcome of the case.
