Former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak Arrested

Former Malaysia Prime Minister Najib Razak (C) reacts while leaving the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) headquarters in Putrajaya, Malaysia Photo: Fazry Ismail / EPA-EFE

Former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak has been arrested by anti-corruption authorities and is due to be charged on Wednesday.

Najib, who has long been plagued by allegations of corruption, has been accused of pocketing $700m (£517m) from state development fund 1MDB.

He has been under investigation since his shock election loss in May and he has denied wrongdoing.

According to a statement by the 1MDB special task force, Najib was arrested at 14:35 local time (06:35 GMT) at his house in relation to matters dealing with SRC, a subsidiary of 1MDB.

He will be charged at 08:30 on Wednesday at the Kuala Lumpur High Court.

Raids in recent weeks have been carried out across properties linked to Najib.

Police say they recovered $273m in luxury goods and cash from a raid in June, calling the seizure of valuables the biggest in Malaysian history.

Jewellery accounted for the biggest portion of the seizure, with the most expensive item being a $1.6m diamond and gold necklace.





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