KUALA LUMPUR: Former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s residence in Taman Duta here has been gazetted as a prison under the Prisons Act 1995.
The declaration, dated Nov 6, was made by Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail under Section 3 of the Act.
According to the Federal Government Gazette, P.U. (B) 456/2026, the declaration covers all buildings and areas measuring 4,558.975 square metres at No. 11, Jalan Langgak Duta, Taman Duta.
The property, situated on Lot 5746 in the Mukim and District of Kuala Lumpur, was declared a prison for the imprisonment or detention of persons lawfully in custody.
The gazette does not specify Najib’s name or state when the premises will begin operating as a place of detention.
The development follows Umno’s payment of Najib’s RM50 million fine earlier today, fulfilling a key condition of the royal pardon that allows him to serve the remainder of his prison sentence under house arrest.
Najib’s lawyer, Muhammad Farhan Muhammad Shafee, subsequently confirmed that the Kuala Lumpur High Court had issued an order allowing the former prime minister to serve the remainder of his sentence at home.
However, the Attorney-General’s Chambers (A-GC) later said implementation of the house arrest arrangement should be temporarily deferred pending clarification of legal issues surrounding the conditional pardon.
In a statement, the A-GC said questions had arisen over whether payment of the RM50 million fine merely fulfilled the financial component of Najib’s sentence or meant that his entire sentence in the SRC International case should be considered completed.
The A-GC stressed that the proposed deferment was not intended to challenge or set aside the Yang di-Pertuan Agong’s decree, but to ensure that the royal pardon and related court orders were implemented correctly.
Earlier, Umno secretary-general Datuk Dr Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki criticised any attempt to delay Najib’s house arrest, describing it as an act of defiance against the King’s decree.
He said the conditions imposed by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong through the Pardons Board had been fulfilled following payment of the fine.
The conditional pardon granted by Sultan Ibrahim on Sept 18 allows Najib to serve the remainder of his SRC International sentence under house arrest until Aug 23, 2028, subject to payment of the RM50 million fine and compliance with the stipulated conditions.
Najib, 73, has been serving his sentence since Aug 23, 2022, following his conviction for misappropriating RM42 million in SRC International funds.
He was originally sentenced to 12 years’ imprisonment and fined RM210 million, but the Pardons Board reduced his sentence to six years and the fine to RM50 million in 2024.