No sign of RM50mil fine payment for Najib

 

KUALA LUMPUR: There was no indication that former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak's representative had paid the RM50 million fine required for him to serve the remainder of his prison sentence under house arrest.

Checks at the High Court registry and payment counter found no record of the payment as of 3.30pm today.

If paid, the fine would be settled via bank draft, with any subsequent development subject to a court order.

Earlier today, speculation that the payment would be made drew journalists and photographers to the court complex.

Najib's lead counsel Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah said he could not confirm whether the payment would be made in the coming days.

"I cannot predict. As far as I am concerned, as of today, there are no instructions," he said.

Co-counsel Muhammad Farhan Muhammad Shafee said he had no information about the payment, adding that he expected to be informed even if a third party intended to make it.

On Sept 18, Najib received a conditional pardon from His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, King of Malaysia, allowing him to serve the remainder of his sentence under house arrest until Aug 23, 2028.

Najib, 73, was sentenced to 12 years in jail and fined RM210 million after the High Court found him guilty on July 28, 2020, of seven charges involving the misappropriation of RM42 million belonging to SRC International Sdn Bhd. - NST