Amnesty warns that Malaysian law gives govt 'abusive powers'

The human rights group said Najib and his government were increasingly resorting to repressive laws in the name of protecting national security "but in practice, imperil human rights."

The U.N. human rights regional office last week also said it was "gravely concerned" that the law may encourage human rights violations and lead to "unjust restrictions" on free speech and assembly.

The Justice Department complaint said more than $700 million of IMDB money was transferred into the bank account of Najib, who is referred to as Malaysian Official 1 in the document, contradicting his claim the money was a donation from the Saudi royal family.

The money taken from IMDB was used to pay for luxury properties in New York and California, a $35 million jet, art by Vincent Van Gogh and Claude Monet and helped finance the Hollywood film, "The Wolf of Wall Street," made by Red Granite Pictures headed by Najib's stepson, according to the DOJ complaint.