Former Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak has filed an application to introduce fresh evidence in his appeal against his conviction and sentence in the 1MDB criminal case involving RM2.27 billion to RM2.28 billion [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]. Najib’s legal team from Shafee & Co filed the application on his behalf before the Court of Appeal under Section 61 of the Courts of Judicature Act 1964 and Rule 7A of the Court of Appeal Rules 1994 [1, 4, 5, 6].
The fresh evidence centers on the involvement of fugitive businessman Low Taek Jho, known as Jho Low, and former 1MDB legal counsel Jasmine Loo Ai Swan [2, 3, 4, 5, 6]. Jho Low remains at large and was never summoned as a prosecution witness, while Jasmine Loo was a key prosecution witness who faced extensive cross-examination during the trial [2, 3, 4, 5, 6].
Najib was found guilty on December 26, 2024, by High Court judge Datuk Collin Lawrence Sequerah of all 25 charges, which included abuse of power and money laundering involving around RM2.27 billion to RM2.28 billion in 1MDB funds [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]. He was sentenced to 15 years in prison, fined approximately RM11.38 billion, and faces an additional 10 years in jail if the fine is unpaid. He was also ordered to pay a recoverable sum of about RM2.08 billion [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6].
Najib is currently serving a prison sentence for an unrelated SRC International case, with plans to serve the 1MDB sentence after completing that term. The projected completion date for the SRC sentence is 2028 [2, 3, 4, 6]. Ongoing appeal proceedings are awaiting the full written grounds of judgment from Datuk Collin Lawrence Sequerah, who has since been appointed a Federal Court judge [1, 2, 3, 4, 6].
The Court of Appeal has scheduled a case management hearing for Najib's fresh evidence application on June 19, 2026. Hearing dates for the overall appeal have not yet been fixed [1, 2, 3].
Najib’s application must meet the strict legal requirements established under the English case Ladd v Marshall to successfully introduce the new evidence [4, 5, 6]. Deputy Public Prosecutor Datuk Ahmad Akram Gharib said, "I confirm knowledge of the matter but have no further comments" [1]. Najib’s lead counsel, Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, stated he was attending a conference and would comment later [1, 2].
