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Najib’s 1MDB plunder made Attila the Hun ‘look like a choirboy’: Malaysian judge
Najib’s 1MDB plunder made Attila the Hun ‘look like a choirboy’: Malaysian judge
The judge who convicted former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak over the 1MDB scandal said the plunder of the sovereign wealth fund was so vast that it eclipsed the exploits of Attila the Hun, one of history’s most notorious conquerors.
“The scale of the plunder that took place (financially speaking, of course) made Attila the Hun look like a choirboy in comparison,” Collin Lawrence Sequerah said in the introduction to his 809-page grounds of judgment.
The written judgment was issued on...
'Najib made Attila the Hun look like a choirboy' says judge ... - The Star
'Najib made Attila the Hun look like a choirboy' says judge ... - The Star
KUALA LUMPUR: The scale of Datuk Seri Najib Razak's offences in the 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) scandal surpasses anything Atilla the Hun ever did, says presiding judge Justice Collin Lawrence Sequerah.
In the full grounds of the High Court decision, Justice Sequerah wrote that the financial scandal that led to the charges being preferred against Najib was described in the global press as "the largest episode of kleptocracy in the world."
"The scale of the plunder that took place (financially speaking, of course) made Attila the Hun look like a choirboy by comparison," he said in the decision.
The long-awaited grounds of judgment, which ran 809 pages, was made available on Tuesday (June 16).
Justice Sequerah, who is now a Federal Court judge, convicted Najib on all 25 charges on Dec 26, 2025.
The judge also spoke on the trial's "chequered history", with the charges against Najib first preferred on Sept 20, 2018 at the Sessions Court. The case was later transferred to the High Court on Oct 31, 2018 but did not proceed due to several factors, including the ongoing SRC International trial at the same time…
1MDB plunder 'made Attila the Hun look like a choirboy', says High ...
1MDB plunder 'made Attila the Hun look like a choirboy', says High ...
KUALA LUMPUR (June 16): The judgement in the criminal trial against former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak's 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) case is finally out, with the trial judge describing the plunder of 1MDB funds as making Attila the Hun look like a choirboy.
Federal Court judge Datuk Collin Lawrence Sequerah, sitting as the trial High Court judge, described this in the much-awaited judgement, in what he noted the world and press described the financial scandal as being the “largest episode of kleptocracy in the world”.
“The scale of the plunder that took place (financially speaking, of course) made Attila the Hun look like a choirboy in comparison,” Sequerah wrote.
Attila was the ruler of the Huns in Central Asia, who has been described as a barbarian who conquered and pillaged Roman cities and empires in his path during his reign between 434 to 453 CE.
In his 810-page judgement, Sequerah also described the challenges in concluding the trial, which had run a period of six years, and heard the testimony of 50 prosecution witnesses and 26 defence witnesses, including that of the former prime mi…
Najib 'made Attila the Hun look like a choirboy', says Malaysian judge ...
Najib 'made Attila the Hun look like a choirboy', says Malaysian judge ...
Najib ‘made Attila the Hun look like a choirboy’, says Malaysian judge in 809-page judgment
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Former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak was convicted on 25 charges in December 2025.
PHOTO: BERITA HARIAN
Published
Jun 16, 2026, 06:03 PM
Updated
Jun 16, 2026, 07:01 PM
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KUALA LUMPUR – The scale of
Najib Razak’s
offences in the
1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) scandal
surpasses anything
Attila
the Hun ever did,
said
presiding judge
Collin Lawrence Sequerah
.
In the full grounds of the High Court decision,
Sequerah
wrote that the financial scandal involving Malaysia’s state fund 1MDB that led to the charges being preferred against Najib was described in the global press as “the largest episode of kleptocracy in the world”.
“The scale of the plunder that took place (financially speaking, of course) made Attila the Hun look like a choirboy by comparison,” he said in the decision.
The long-awaited grounds of judgment, which ran 809 pages,
were
made available on June 16.
Sequerah
, who is
a
Federal Court judge,
convicted Najib on all 25 charges
on…
'Made Attila the Hun look like a choirboy' - judge's 809-page verdict ...
'Made Attila the Hun look like a choirboy' - judge's 809-page verdict ...
'Made Attila the Hun look like a choirboy' - judge's 809-page verdict on Najib's 1MDB plunder
Published on 16 Jun 2026 7:05:25 PM
The full grounds of judgment in Datuk Seri Najib Razak's 1MDB trial have been released, with presiding judge Justice Collin Lawrence Sequerah describing the scale of financial plunder as making Attila the Hun look like a choirboy by comparison.Read more athttps://tinyurl.com/ppfjr8b2WATCH MORE:https://thestartv.com/c/newsSUBSCRIBE:https://cutt.ly/TheStarLIKE:https://fb.com/TheStarOnline
The full grounds of judgment in Datuk Seri Najib Razak's 1MDB trial have been released, with presiding judge Justice Collin Lawrence Sequerah describing the scale of financial plunder as making Attila the Hun look like a choirboy by comparison.Read more athttps://tinyurl.com/ppfjr8b2WATCH MORE:https://thestartv.com/c/newsSUBSCRIBE:https://cutt.ly/TheStarLIKE:https://fb.com/TheStarOnline
Corroboration
No verdict, no pronouncement. The model extracts atomic factual claims with verbatim quotes; every quote is validated against the source text and corroboration is computed by counting how many editorially-opposed blocs assert each fact. 3 fabricated/unverifiable quotes were rejected by the cite-or-die gate.
The spine · 7 facts corroborated across ≥2 opposed blocs
2×broadly confirmedThe judge who convicted former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak over the 1MDB scandal said the scale of the plunder made Attila the Hun look like a choirboy in comparison.
chinaother
scmp“The scale of the plunder that took place (financially speaking, of course) made Attila the Hun look like a choirboy in comparison,”
thestar.com.my“The scale of the plunder that took place (financially speaking, of course) made Attila the Hun look like a choirboy by comparison,”
1×broadly confirmedKimberley Allen, a 33-year-old woman from Portsmouth, experienced several devastating miscarriages and gave up hope of becoming a mother.
other
whatsthejam.com“But after several devastating miscarriages, the 33-year-old gave up hope.”
ok.co.uk“The 33-year-old had longed to be a mother all her life but after several heartbreaking miscarriages she had abandon the hope of having children.”
cafemom.com“Kimberley Allen has always wanted to be a mom. But she gave up on her dream at the age of 33 after multiple miscarriages.”
1×broadly confirmedKimberley Allen’s best friend, Becki, offered to be a surrogate using her egg and Kimberley’s husband Jamie’s sperm to conceive a child.
other
whatsthejam.com“Until Becki, 33 – Kimberley’s best friend – gave them a lifeline; to have a baby that was half hers and half Jamie’s.”
mirror.co.uk“Until Becki, 33 – Kimberley’s best friend – gave them a lifeline; to have a baby that was half hers and half Jamie’s.”
ok.co.uk“Then Becki, also 33 and Kimberley's closest friend, handed them an incredible lifeline - the chance to parent a”
cafemom.com“But then her friend Becki made her an offer she couldn’t refuse: use Becki’s egg and Jamie’s sperm to make a baby.”
1×broadly confirmedKimberley Allen said the decision to have her best friend carry a child using her husband’s sperm was the best decision she has ever made.
other
whatsthejam.com“and says it was the best decision she has ever made.”
mirror.co.uk“and says it was the best decision she has ever made.”
ok.co.uk“and says it was the best decision she has ever made.”
cafemom.com“The offer was so generous.”
1×broadly confirmedJamie Allen is Kimberley Allen’s husband.
other
whatsthejam.com“Until Becki, 33 – Kimberley’s best friend – gave them a lifeline; to have a baby that was half hers and half Jamie’s.”
mirror.co.uk“Until Becki, 33 – Kimberley’s best friend – gave them a lifeline; to have a baby that was half hers and half Jamie’s.”
ok.co.uk“She and Jamie, 35, had come to terms with the reality that they might never have children of their own.”
cafemom.com“use Becki’s egg and Jamie’s sperm to make a baby.”
1×broadly confirmedBecki is 33 years old.
other
whatsthejam.com“Until Becki, 33 – Kimberley’s best friend – gave them a lifeline;”
mirror.co.uk“Until Becki, 33 – Kimberley’s best friend – gave them a lifeline;”
ok.co.uk“Then Becki, also 33 and Kimberley's closest friend, handed them an incredible lifeline”
1×broadly confirmedJamie Allen is 35 years old.
other
whatsthejam.com“Until Becki, 33 – Kimberley’s best friend – gave them a lifeline; to have a baby that was half hers and half Jamie’s.”
mirror.co.uk“After meeting husband Jamie, 35, the pair accepted that they’d never become parents.”
ok.co.uk“She and Jamie, 35, had come to terms with the reality that they might never have children of their own.”
Single-source · 5 — reported by one bloc only (uncorroborated)
The judge who convicted Najib Razak described the 1MDB scandal as 'the largest episode of kleptocracy in the world.'
thestar.com.my
Justice Collin Lawrence Sequerah convicted Najib Razak on all 25 charges on December 26, 2025.
thestar.com.my
The charges against Najib Razak were first preferred on September 20, 2018 at the Sessions Court.
thestar.com.my
The case against Najib Razak was transferred to the High Court on October 31, 2018.
thestar.com.my
Kimberley Allen told What’s The Jam that when Becki offered to be a surrogate, she thought she had misheard.
mirror.co.uk
Framing · 8 — loaded language surfaced (spin shown, not adopted)
scmp
“Najib’s 1MDB plunder made Attila the Hun ‘look like a choirboy’”
→ The judge compared the scale of Najib’s financial crimes to Attila the Hun.
thestar.com.my
“Najib made Attila the Hun look like a choirboy”
→ The judge compared the scale of Najib’s financial crimes to Attila the Hun.
thestar.com.my
“the long-awaited grounds of judgment”
→ The judgment was released after a long wait.
whatsthejam.com
“gave them a lifeline”
→ Becki offered to be a surrogate.
mirror.co.uk
“the best decision she has ever made”
→ Kimberley Allen believes the arrangement was positive.
ok.co.uk
“heartbreaking miscarriages”
→ Kimberley Allen experienced multiple miscarriages.
cafemom.com
“a true blue, ride-or-die best friend”
→ Becki is described as a loyal friend.
cafemom.com
“showed how strong the bonds of friendship can be”
→ Becki’s action is framed as an expression of deep friendship.