1MDB Set to Prove Najib Central to US$5.64 Billion Fraud as Civil Trial Opens

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 3 — Sovereign wealth fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) and four of its subsidiaries told the High Court on Monday that they are prepared to demonstrate that former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak was at the absolute core of an alleged fraud scheme that drained US$5.64 billion (RM23.1 billion) from the group.

The trial marks the commencement of a civil suit filed in May 2021 by 1MDB alongside 1MDB Energy Holdings Limited, 1MDB Energy Limited, 1MDB Energy (Langat) Limited, and Global Diversified Investment Company Limited against Najib and seven co-defendants.

Presenting the plaintiffs’ opening statement before Judicial Commissioner Mohamad Redzuan Idrus, lead counsel Datuk Lim Chee Wee submitted that evidence would prove Najib exercised overwhelming authority over 1MDB’s management and board.

Lim argued that Najib leveraged his dual apex positions as Prime Minister and Minister of Finance—as well as controller of Minister of Finance Incorporated (MOF Inc) and sole shareholder of 1MDB—to force through abnormal financial transactions with extreme haste. These actions, counsel asserted, were intended to enrich Najib, his wife Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor, his stepson Riza Aziz, and fugitive businessman Low Taek Jho (Jho Low) alongside his family.

The court heard that Najib’s overlapping roles from 2009 until May 2016 legally qualified him as a shadow director under the Companies Act 1965, placing him in direct control of the company’s executive decisions and board actions. Describing the matter as a profound betrayal of public trust, Lim said the suit seeks accountability for the severe financial damage inflicted upon the nation and its citizens.

The plaintiffs subsequently called their first witness, Richard Templeman, director of investigation at UK-based financial advisory firm Kroll Advisory Ltd, to detail the complex tracking of misappropriated funds.

The civil proceedings follow Najib’s criminal conviction on December 26, 2025, where the High Court sentenced the 73-year-old former prime minister to 15 years’ imprisonment and an RM11.4 billion fine across 25 counts of abuse of power and money laundering involving RM2.3 billion in 1MDB funds.

–NMT