KUALA LUMPUR
\nFormer Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak\u2019s new prison lodgings may be less than an hour\u2019s drive from his mansion in Kuala Lumpur\u2019s affluent Bukit Tunku neighborhood, but it is a world away from the luxury he is used to.
\nNajib lost his final appeal on a 12-year jail sentence for corruption on Tuesday, and was taken under heavy security to the country\u2019s largest jailhouse in Kajang \u2014 a sprawling complex southeast of the capital that holds up to 5,000 prisoners and includes a women\u2019s facility .
\nFirst convicted in July 2020, Najib had been out on bail pending appeals. The country\u2019s top court upheld his guilty verdict over criminal breach of trust, abuse of power, and money laundering charges for illegally receiving about $10 million from a former unit of state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB).
\nThe son of Malaysia\u2019s second prime minister, Najib held the premiership from 2009 to 2018, when public anger over the multi-billion dollar graft scandal at 1MDB brought election defeat.
\nHaving been golf buddies with US presidents Barack Obama and Donald Trump and other world leaders, the British-educated son of Malay nobility will now count murderers and drug traffickers among his fellow inmates in Kajang.
\nOne of them, Azilah Hadri, was a member of Najib\u2019s security detail before he was convicted of murder for the 2006 killing of Mongolian model Altantuya Shaariibuu.
\nAzilah is currently on death row, while a fellow policeman who was convicted along with him sought sanctuary in Australia, where he remains.
\nIn a 2019 court filing seeking to set aside his conviction, Azilah accused Najib of ordering the murder, a claim the ex-premier denied. The Federal Court rejected Azilah\u2019s application in 2020.
\nThe Prisons Department did not respond to an emailed request for comment on what conditions Najib will face in jail. On Facebook, it denied as fake news a post by another user saying that the prisons provided special privileges for \u201cVIP inmates\u201d such as televisions and air-conditioning.
\nOtherwise, rights groups say Malaysian prisons suffer from overcrowding, poor hygiene, and lack of medical facilities, with infectious diseases such as tuberculosis and scabies common.
\nOpposition leader Anwar Ibrahim, who spent a total of eight years incarcerated at another Malaysian prison, has said he experienced inhumane and degrading conditions, including being served rotten fish \u201call the time,\u201d according to media reports.
\nHowever, Najib\u2019s former deputy prime minister, Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, told parliament in 2016 that Anwar obtained privileges based on medical advice, including a customized hospital bed, a desk, hot showers, and a special diet.
\nAnwar was also given access to the prison library, received regular visitors, and was allowed to leave for hospital treatments and to attend trial, according to Ahmad Zahid.
\nAnwar was jailed twice on corruption and sodomy charges, which he maintains were politically motivated. He was pardoned by the king and released days after Najib\u2019s election defeat in 2018.
\nThe only times that Najib is likely to leave Kajang, are when he is escorted to court to attend hearings in four other cases related to corruption at 1MDB and other government agencies.
\nUS and Malaysian authorities say over $4.5 billion was stolen.
\nMalaysian investigators say they traced more than $1 billion to Najib\u2019s bank accounts, but he has steadfastly denied any wrongdoing and pleaded not guilty to all charges.
\nThe opulent lifestyle of Najib and his family came to light with the discovery of about $275 million worth of cash, jewelry, and other luxury goods in residences used by Najib and his family.
\nNajib\u2019s wife, Rosmah Mansor, has pleaded not guilty in a corruption case unrelated to 1MDB. The court is set to deliver its verdict in her trial on Sept. 1.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
KUALA LUMPUR Former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak\u2019s new prison lodgings may be less than an hour\u2019s drive from his mansion in Kuala Lumpur\u2019s affluent Bukit Tunku neighborhood, but it is a world away from the luxury he is used to. Najib lost his final appeal on a 12-year jail sentence for corruption on Tuesday, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":279323,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-279297","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n