King Grants Conditional Pardon to Najib Razak, Allows House Arrest Until August 2028

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 18 — His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, King of Malaysia, has granted a conditional pardon to former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, allowing him to serve the remainder of his prison sentence under house arrest until Aug 23, 2028.

The order is subject to Najib paying a RM50 million fine, according to a statement released by the Legal Affairs Division (BHEUU) of the Prime Minister’s Department following the 64th meeting of the Pardons Board for the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur, Labuan, and Putrajaya at Istana Negara today.

“He must comply with the conditions imposed and, should he fail to comply with any of these conditions, the conditional pardon will be revoked and he must immediately serve the remainder of his sentence in prison,” BHEUU said in the statement.

Najib, 73, has been incarcerated at Kajang Prison since Aug 23, 2022, following his conviction for the misappropriation of RM42 million in SRC International Sdn Bhd funds.

The Federal Territories Pardons Board session was chaired by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong and attended by Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Federal Territories) Hannah Yeoh and Attorney General Tan Sri Mohd Dusuki Mokhtar. Official vehicles carrying Yeoh and Mohd Dusuki were seen entering Istana Negara early this morning, with both leaving the palace grounds shortly before 10 am.

In July 2020, the High Court originally sentenced the former Pekan Member of Parliament to 12 years in prison and a RM210 million fine after finding him guilty of seven charges in the SRC International case. The conviction and sentence were subsequently upheld by the Court of Appeal in December 2021 and the Federal Court in August 2022. However, during its 61st meeting on Jan 29, 2024, the Pardons Board commuted his prison term to six years and reduced the fine to RM50 million.

While the conditional pardon pertains to his SRC International criminal conviction, Najib continues to navigate multiple other legal proceedings regarding 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB). On Dec 26, 2025, the High Court sentenced Najib to 15 years in prison and imposed an RM11.4 billion fine after convicting him of four counts of abuse of power and 21 counts of money laundering involving RM2.3 billion in 1MDB funds. Najib filed an appeal on Dec 29, 2025, which remains pending before the Court of Appeal.

Furthermore, on March 31 this year, the High Court ordered Najib to pay US$1.3 billion to SRC International for breach of fiduciary duties and misappropriation of company funds, though execution of the civil judgment has been stayed pending appeal. He also faces an additional civil suit filed by SRC International and Gandingan Mentari Sdn Bhd in 2021, as well as a US$5.64 billion lawsuit brought by 1MDB and four of its subsidiaries, both of which remain pending before the courts.

–NMT