Former Malaysian PM Ismail Sabri charged with concealing assets

Former Malaysian Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob was charged on Thursday with failure to declare assets, the third former premier prosecuted in recent years over alleged graft-related offences.



Ismail Sabri, who was Malaysia's prime minister for just over 15 months from 2021 to 2022 during a period of political upheaval, was accused of concealing assets that consisted of local and foreign currencies as well as gold bars and silver.



Ismail Sabri's defence counsel Amer Hamzah Arshad said at a press conference that the charge was essentially a failure to comply with a notice to declare certain assets.



Ismail Sabri pleaded not guilty at a lower court in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday and was released on 300,000 ringgit ($74,534) bail. If convicted, he faces jail of up to five years and a fine of up to 100,000 ringgit.



The anti-graft agency in March last year said Ismail Sabri had submitted an assets declaration after being ordered to do so as part of its investigation into alleged graft and money laundering, following the seizure of nearly $40 million in assets allegedly linked to him.