This article is more than 1 year old

This article is more than 1 year old

Rosmah Mansor, the wife of the former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak, who was widely mocked for her luxury lifestyle, has been arrested for alleged money laundering in connection with a long-running political scandal.

The involvement of Rosmah in the 1MDB scandal, in which billions of dollars from a government investment fund were allegedly stolen and fraudulently spent, has long been rumoured but so far never proven.

Rosmah was charged with 17 counts of money laundering and tax evasion. She pleaded not guilty to all charges.

Described as the “world’s biggest corruption scandal”, 1MDB saw funds intended for economic development allegedly spent on yachts, parties and gifts for celebrities such as Paris Hilton and Leonardo DiCaprio, Picasso paintings and real estate in New York, as well as the production of the film The Wolf of Wall Street.

At least $681m of the 1MDB money is alleged to have gone into the former prime minister’s personal bank account and used to fund the expensive lifestyle and lavish spending habits of his wife. Both Najib and Rosmah have denied any wrongdoing.

Recent raids on the couple’s properties as part of the 1MDB investigation saw the police seize 1,400 necklaces, 567 handbags, 423 watches, 2,200 rings, 1,600 brooches and 14 tiaras, most of which were thought to belong to Rosmah, amounting to a total value of $273m. A set of handbags by the French fashion company Hermès was found to be worth $12.7m.

Najib raids: $273m of goods seized from former Malaysian PM's properties Read more

Najib, who has been arrested twice since his fall from power in May, is already facing more than 30 charges of money laundering, corruption and bribery related to the scandal, which could land him with a life sentence in prison. His trial begins in February.

• This article was amended on 4 October 2018. An earlier version said Rosmah Mansor had pleaded guilty to all charges. This has been corrected to say not guilty.