Jailed Malaysian ex-PM Najib begins house arrest; wife barred from living with him, party official says

Former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak's wife, Rosmah Mansor, is expected to remain at her residence in Pavilion rather than live with him at the family's Taman Duta home while he serves the remainder of his prison sentence under house arrest, according to an official from the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO).

Nurulhidayah Ahmad Zahid, a member of UMNO Women's executive council, said Najib's family members would not be permitted to live with him during the house-arrest period.

She said the residence at Jalan Langgak Duta had been gazetted as a prison and would remain subject to prison regulations.

“His family will not be staying with him. Rosmah will be staying at Pavilion,” she said in a response to a question on social media.

Nurulhidayah also said visits would be subject to designated visiting hours and that prison authorities would determine the food and drinks provided to Najib.

She said online food orders would not be allowed.

Her comments came a day after the Kuala Lumpur High Court ordered Najib to serve the remainder of his reduced six-year sentence in the SRC International case at his Taman Duta residence, effective immediately.

Najib, 73, was transferred from Kajang Prison to the residence on Tuesday night, 10 November, arriving at about 9.27pm in a vehicle escorted by prison officers.

The arrangement is due to continue until 23 August 2028. Najib is then scheduled to return to Kajang Prison to begin serving a separate sentence in the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) case.

Family members not permitted to live at the residence

Nurulhidayah's comments were made in response to questions on Threads about the practical arrangements for Najib's house arrest, including whether his wife, children and grandchildren would be allowed to stay at the property.

She said the residence had been gazetted as a prison, meaning Najib would remain subject to institutional restrictions despite being transferred from a conventional prison facility.

She also said visits would be governed by designated hours and procedures similar to those applying to prison inmates.

The statements about Rosmah's accommodation and the restrictions on food deliveries were attributed to Nurulhidayah. They were not presented as a separate formal announcement by the Prisons Department.

Rosmah's expected stay at Pavilion means she will not share the Taman Duta residence with Najib during the period covered by the house-arrest order, according to Nurulhidayah's explanation.

Najib's transfer followed a series of legal and administrative developments over the implementation of a conditional royal pardon granted in September.

High Court orders house arrest until August 2028

On 10 November, High Court judge Aslam Zainuddin set aside an earlier order issued on 6 November and replaced it with an order giving effect to the conditional pardon granted by Malaysia's King, Sultan Ibrahim.

The new order allows Najib to serve the remainder of his six-year reduced prison sentence in the SRC International case under house arrest at No. 11, Jalan Langgak Duta, Taman Duta, Kuala Lumpur.

The judge said he had considered the conditional pardon order, proof that Najib had paid the RM50 million fine, the earlier court order and other relevant documents.

The court's decision followed a dispute over the interpretation and implementation of the royal pardon.

Najib paid the RM50 million fine on 6 November.

However, the Attorney-General's Chambers (AGC) sought a temporary deferment of the house-arrest arrangement while it examined the legal implications of the order.

In a statement issued that day, the AGC said questions had arisen over whether payment of the fine fulfilled only the financial component of Najib's sentence or meant that the entire sentence in the SRC International case, including the remaining prison term, should be regarded as completed.

Under one interpretation, the AGC said, house arrest was an alternative place or method for serving the remaining prison sentence, rather than the termination of the sentence.

A second interpretation was that payment of the fine allowed the conditional pardon to take full effect, meaning the prison term in the SRC case would be considered completed.

The AGC said clarification was necessary because the status of the SRC sentence affected the commencement of Najib's separate prison sentence in the 1MDB case.

On 10 November, Attorney-General Mohd Dusuki Mokhtar confirmed that the AGC had filed an application at the High Court seeking a review of the 6 November order and a fresh order consistent with the conditional pardon.

The High Court subsequently issued the replacement order.

Home Ministry says it will implement the court decision

Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said the Home Ministry was ready to implement the High Court's decision.

In a statement on 10 November, he said the ministry respected the royal pardon granted by Sultan Ibrahim under Article 42 of the Federal Constitution.

He said the court had ordered Najib to serve the remainder of his six-year sentence at the Taman Duta residence until 23 August 2028.

Saifuddin said the earlier delay had resulted from legal questions surrounding the interpretation of the conditional pardon and the implications of the 6 November discharge order.

The High Court's decision had clarified those issues, he said.

He added that the ministry and the Prisons Department were responsible for ensuring that decisions concerning detention and the enforcement of sentences were implemented in accordance with the law and valid court orders.

The ministry's statement did not provide a detailed public account of the day-to-day restrictions that would apply to Najib at the residence.

Background to Najib's SRC International conviction

Najib began serving his prison sentence at Kajang Prison on 23 August 2022, after Malaysia's Federal Court upheld his conviction in the SRC International case.

The case concerned RM42 million (approximately US$10 million) transferred from SRC International, a former subsidiary of the state investment fund 1MDB, into accounts linked to Najib.

He was convicted in 2020 on seven charges involving abuse of power, criminal breach of trust and money laundering. The Court of Appeal upheld the conviction and sentence in December 2021, and the Federal Court dismissed his final appeal in August 2022.

The original sentence was 12 years in prison and a RM210 million fine.

In January 2024, the Federal Territories Pardons Board reduced the prison sentence to six years and the fine to RM50 million. The reduction was announced following a meeting of the Pardons Board chaired by the then King, Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah.

On 18 September 2026, Sultan Ibrahim granted Najib a further conditional pardon, allowing him to serve the remainder of the sentence under house arrest until 23 August 2028, subject to payment of the RM50 million fine and compliance with the stipulated conditions.

The decision was made at the 64th meeting of the Pardons Board for the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur, Labuan and Putrajaya.

The Legal Affairs Division of the Prime Minister's Department said the conditional pardon could be revoked if Najib failed to comply with its conditions, requiring him to serve the remaining sentence in prison.

Separate 1MDB sentence remains in place

The house-arrest order applies to Najib's sentence in the SRC International case. It does not cover a separate sentence imposed in December 2025 in another major case linked to 1MDB.

In that case, the High Court found Najib guilty of four counts of abuse of power and 21 counts of money laundering involving RM2.3 billion in funds linked to 1MDB.

He was sentenced to 15 years in prison and fined RM11.4 billion. The court ordered the prison terms to run concurrently, with the sentence to begin after completion of the SRC International sentence.

Najib is appealing the conviction and sentence.

Under the 10 November house-arrest order, he is due to return to Kajang Prison on 24 August 2028 to begin serving the separate 1MDB sentence, subject to the outcome of the legal proceedings.

Najib was Malaysia's prime minister from 2009 to 2018. He has denied wrongdoing in the 1MDB cases.