The new government’s appointment of an attorney general, Tommy Thomas, could see moves against high-ranking persons accelerate, the Japan Times reported.

Najib and his wife Rosmah Mansor are being prosecuted by authorities following his defeat on 9 May.

Najib’s wife was taken to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission office, where she was questioned for three hours. She was summoned nearly two weeks after Najib was questioned twice by the agency.

The former PM created the 1MDB fund when he took power in 2009, but it accumulated billions in debts. He is accused of siphoning off funds for personal use. Claims about transfers of illicit funds have prompted investigations in half a dozen jurisdictions around the world, including Switzerland, the US and Singapore. In Singapore, the local financial regulator has kicked out BSI and Falcon Private Bank for serious lapses in their AML processes.

In the US, for example, investors say Najib’s associates stole and laundered $4.5 billion from the fund from 2009 to 2014, some of which landed in Najib’s bank account. They say $27.3 million was used to buy a rare diamond necklace for Rosmah.

A probe into the scandal was reopened by the new PM, Mahathir Mohamad. Najib, who has repeatedly denied claims of wrongdoing, has been banned from leaving Malaysia.