$10 mn pay-cut for Goldman Sachs CEO over 1MDB scandal

Yahoo – AFP, January 27, 2021 

Goldman Sachs CEO David Michael Solomon saw his salary cut
due to the 1MDB Malaysian bribery scandal 

Goldman Sachs cut its CEO David Solomon's 2020 salary by $10 million to $17.5 million because of the bank's role in the 1MDB Malaysian bribery scandal, according to documents filed Tuesday. 

"The amounts of remuneration reflect the decision announced by the board of directors," said a securities filing that also detailed pay-cuts for COO John Waldron and CFO Stephen Scherr. 

Although the three were not "aware of the firm's participation in any illicit activity at the time the firm arranged the 1MDB bond transactions, the Board views the 1MDB matter as an institutional failure," it said. 

Goldman Sachs pleaded guilty in October over its role in the scandal, and agreed to pay nearly $3 billion to close US investigations. 

Former Malaysian leader Najib Razak was sentenced last year to 12 years in jail on corruption charges linked to the scandal that led to the downfall of his government.

Goldman Sachs agrees to largest penalty ever in 1MDB scandal

Yahoo – AFP, October 22, 2020 

The Malaysian unit of global financial titan Goldman Sachs pleaded guilty
in a US court in the massive 1MDB Malaysian bribery scandal

Global financial titan Goldman Sachs agreed to pay $2.9 billion in penalties to settle criminal charges in the 1MDB Malaysian bribery scandal, the largest US fine ever in a corruption case, the Justice Department announced Thursday. 

Acting US Assistant Attorney General Brian C. Rabbitt said Goldman "accepted responsibility" in the case that involved $1.6 billion in bribes, the largest ever recorded, and massive gains laundered through the US financial system. 

Goldman Sachs helped raise $6.5 billion for the Malaysian government's sovereign wealth fund, and the US Justice Department has said more than $4.5 billion was stolen from 1MDB by high-level officials at the fund and their associates between 2009 and 2015. 

The investment fund "was looted by corrupt officials and their co-conspirators, including senior Goldman bankers" turning it "into a piggy bank for corrupt public officials and their cronies," Rabbitt said at a press briefing. 

In a first for Goldman Sachs, the company's Malaysian unit pleaded guilty in a US court Thursday for violations of US bribery law as part of a deal to end the criminal probe in the sweeping case that involved authorities in nine countries. 

The guilty plea could curtail activities of Goldman Sachs Malaysia but allows the parent company to avoid admitting wrongdoing in court -- which would have damaged its ability to do business. 

'Meaningful consequences' 

The parent company pleaded not guilty in US court and agreed to "deferred prosecution" for three-and-a-half years, which is expected to impose certain conditions including increased monitoring. 

But Rabbitt stressed that the company has been charged in the bribery scandal, "so there has been a significant amount of criminal liability" for Goldman and "imposes meaningful consequences" in the cases. 

The Justice Department has charged three individuals in the case including two former Goldman executives. Tim Leissner, the former Southeast Asia Chairman, has pleaded guilty, while Ng Chong Hwa, also known as "Roger Ng," former head of investment banking for GS Malaysia, is awaiting trial, and Low Taek Jho remains a fugitive. 

"Goldman admitted today that, in order to effectuate the scheme, Leissner, Ng, Employee 1, and others conspired with Low Taek Jho" to pay the bribes and ignored red flags, the statement said. 

In another stunning turn, the company said it will demand repayment $174 million in salary and bonuses paid to current and former executives including Chief Executive David Solomon and his predecessor Lloyd Blankfein. 

These so-called clawbacks are almost unheard of in corporate cases. 

Solomon said in a statement "it is abundantly clear that certain former employees broke the law, lied to our colleagues and circumvented firm controls,"adding, "we recognize that we did not adequately address red flags." 

Included in the total penalty amount, Goldman will pay a $400 fines to the SEC and repay $600 million in earnings, and pay a $154 million fine to the Federal Reserve which also will require the company to improve its risk management and internal oversight. 

The Malaysian government dropped the charges against Goldman in July after reaching a $3.9 billion settlement with the financial giant. 

The firm, which posted profits of $3.5 billion in the latest quarter, had set aside more than $3.1 billion as of September 30 "for litigation and regulatory proceedings."

Related Article:

Goldman Sachs fined US$350 million in Hong Kong over1MDB

Malaysia in $3.9 bn settlement with Goldman over 1MDB

Yahoo – AFP, Sam Reeves, July 24, 2020

Factfile on the 1MDB scandal in Malaysia. (AFP Photo/John SAEKI)

Kuala Lumpur (AFP) - Malaysia reached a $3.9 billion settlement with Goldman Sachs Friday over the Wall Street titan's role in the 1MDB scandal in exchange for the country ending all criminal proceedings against the bank.

Billions of dollars were looted from sovereign wealth fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad in a fraud that allegedly involved former prime minister Najib Razak and his cronies.

The cash plundered from state coffers bankrolled a global spending spree, and was spent on everything from artwork, to real estate and a super-yacht.

Goldman's role came under scrutiny over bond issues totalling $6.5 billion it helped arrange for the investment vehicle, with Malaysia claiming large amounts were misappropriated during the process.

Najib lost power in 2018 amid public anger at the scandal, and a new government charged Goldman and a string of former and current employees over the fraud, as well as demanding hefty compensation.

Malaysia and Goldman had been locked in long-running talks, and the country's finance ministry announced a breakthrough had finally been achieved.

The settlement comprises a cash payment of $2.5 billion to Malaysia and a guarantee that at least $1.4 billion in assets acquired with misappropriated funds would be recovered, it said.

"This settlement represents assets that rightfully belong to the Malaysian people," Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz said.

"We are confident that we are securing more money from Goldman Sachs compared to previous attempts, which were far below expectations."

Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin hailed a "victory" and said that, combined with 1MDB-linked funds already returned to Malaysia by the US, the country will receive a total of $4.5 billion.

Ex-PM Najib Razak is currently facing three, 1MDB-linked trials, and the verdict 

in the first is due to be handed down Tuesday (AFP Photo/Mohd RASFAN)

'Important step'

However, the previous Malaysian government, which lost power earlier this year, had demanded $7.5 billion in compensation from Goldman.

When they charged the Goldman, Malaysian prosecutors had accused the bank of making false statements which led to $2.7 billion being misappropriated in relation to the bond issues.

But after Malaysia announced the settlement, Goldman said the deal resolves "all the criminal and regulatory proceedings in Malaysia involving the firm".

"Today's settlement is an important step towards putting the 1MDB matter behind us and will help enable the Malaysian government to move forward with additional recovery efforts," it said.

After losing power at the 2018 elections, Najib was hit with dozens of charges linked to the controversy and is currently facing three trials. On Tuesday, a court will hand down its verdict in his first trial over the scandal.

He denies wrongdoing.

A former Goldman partner, Tim Leissner, has previously pleaded guilty in the US over his part in the controversy.

A Malaysian former managing director at the bank, Ng Chong Hwa, has also been charged in the US and Malaysia over the scandal.

The US Department of Justice, which is investigating the fraud as huge sums were allegedly laundered through the US financial system, says that about $4.5 billion was looted from 1MDB.

The scandal's alleged mastermind, jet-setting Malaysian financier Low Taek Jho, has also been charged in Malaysia and the US.

Low denies any wrongdoing, and his current whereabouts are unknown.

Malaysia hands jail term to laundrette cat killer

Yahoo – AFP, November 6, 2019

A Malaysian man was sentenced to 34 months in jail for killing a pregnant cat
by stuffing it into a laundrette dryer (AFP Photo/Jeff Haynes)

Kuala Lumpur (AFP) - A Malaysian man who killed a pregnant cat by putting it into a laundrette dryer has been sentenced to 34 months in jail, official media reported, in a case that sparked outrage.

K. Ganesh was handed the prison term Tuesday after being found guilty of breaking animal protection laws at the self-service laundry outside Kuala Lumpur in September last year, official news agency Bernama reported.

He will remain free on bail for now as he plans to appeal.

The 42-year-old was the second man to be sentenced over the killing after a taxi driver was jailed for two years for the crime in January.

Malaysians reacted with fury when CCTV footage went viral showing the cat being stuffed into the dryer late at night.

Two men then inserted tokens into the machine to set it running and left. A female customer later found the animal's carcass and the matter was reported to the police.

Sentencing Ganesh, Judge Rasyihah Ghazali said: "I hope this sentence will serve as a lesson to the accused and the public to not be cruel to animals."

He was also fined 40,000 ringgit ($9,700), Bernama reported late Tuesday. AFP could not immediately contact Ganesh's lawyers.

A third person was earlier detained over the killing but prosecutors dropped the case.

Malaysia ex-PM Najib's 1MDB graft trial resumes

Yahoo – AFP, M. Jegathesan, April 15, 2019

Former prime minister Najib Razak (shown at the start of his trial on April 3) and
his cronies are accused of stealing billions of dollars from 1MDB and spending it on
everything from high-end real estate to artworks and a luxury yacht (AFP Photo/
Mohd RASFAN)

Toppled Malaysian leader Najib Razak returned to court for the second day of his high-profile corruption trial Monday, with the former premier accused of plundering large sums from scandal-hit state fund 1MDB.

The 65-year-old finally went on trial this month over his alleged role in looting the investment vehicle, the first of several court cases he is expected to face over the controversy.

The ex-prime minister and his cronies are accused of stealing billions of dollars from 1MDB and spending it on everything from high-end real estate to artworks and a luxury yacht.

The allegations played a large part in prompting voters to oust his corruption-plagued coalition, which had been in power for six decades, at historic elections last year. Since then, Najib has been arrested and hit with dozens of charges over the scandal.

The ex-leader's highly-anticipated trial began on April 3, with Najib denying seven charges related to the theft of 42 million ringgit ($10.2 million) from SRC International, a former 1MDB unit.

It is just a fraction of the money Najib is accused of stealing -- he has also been charged in a separate case over the alleged transfer of $681 million to his bank account.

He arrived at the High Court in Kuala Lumpur Monday for the second day of proceedings, wearing a dark suit and tie, and passed through a scrum of journalists before entering the courtroom and taking his seat in the dock.

Bank raid

The main witness called Monday was Azizul Adzani Abdul Ghafar, an investigating officer from the central bank, who was part of a team that raided the branch of a local lender, AmBank.

Factfile on the Malaysian 1MDB corruption allegations and charges faced by 

Malaysia's former leader Najib Razak (AFP Photo/Laurence CHU, John SAEKI)

The officers seized documents related to accounts held by Najib at the bank, accounts belonging to SRC International, and accounts held by another company. The stolen money from SRC was allegedly sent to Najib's accounts at AmBank.

Earlier Najib's defence team cross-examined Companies Commission of Malaysia official Muhamad Akmaluddin Abdullah, who had testified when the trial opened, on matters related to SRC's records.

After the trial was adjourned for the day, Najib's chief lawyer Muhammad Shafee Abdullah said the prosecution would have to prove the ex-leader knew the money flows were illicit to convict him.

“There can be many transactions. The issue is does (Najib) know the exact thing that is going on, does he know in fact it is from illegal sources?" he told reporters outside court.

"The prosecution need to show that he is complicit, that he is part of the conspiracy."

Najib has consistently denied any wrongdoing over the looting of 1MDB.

Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, who came out of retirement to lead an alliance to a shock election victory against Najib's government last year, has pledged to bring Najib to justice and recoup the huge sums of cash stolen from 1MDB.

The US Department of Justice, which is investigating the 1MDB controversy as money was allegedly laundered through the American financial system, believes $4.5 billion in total was looted from the fund.

Malaysia has also charged Wall Street titan Goldman Sachs over the scandal, alleging the bank and its former employees stole billions of dollars from 1MDB.

Humbled Goldman Sachs still faces questions on 1MDB

Yahoo – AFP, Luc OLINGA, 9 February 2019

Executives at Goldman Sachs headquarters face questions over the firm's work\
for scandal-ridden Malaysian fund 1MDB

Goldman Sachs's decision to potentially cut bonuses for top executives over the 1MDB scandal reflects an acknowledgement at shareholder and public outrage over the debacle.

The prestigious investment bank announced last week that it could withhold millions of dollars in bonuses to former Chief Executive Lloyd Blankfein and two other retired executives depending on the outcome of ongoing probes into the Malaysian fund.

The bonuses were first approved in 2011 and the annual payouts depend on the firm's performance over the ensuing eight years. In Blankfein's case, the bonus began at $7 million and nearly doubled, according to US securities documents.

Beyond the bonuses, Goldman also said it could claw back compensation from current chief executive David Solomon and two other current senior executives, president John Waldron and chief financial officer Stephen Scherr.

Solomon was paid $23 million last year, including $15.4 million in stock options.

The announcement on bonuses was intended as a message for shareholders who are upset at how the corruption scandal has tarred the bank's image at a time when it is working to build up its consumer banking business through the online platform Marcus, according to two people familiar with the matter.

The board of directors wants shareholders to know it is not blind to the gravity of the situation, said one of the sources, adding that the message was not meant to be an admission of wrongdoing.

Besides Solomon, who also serves as chairman, Goldman's 13-member board includes ArcelorMittal chief executive Lakshmi Mittal.

Experts say Goldman Sachs could face a fine of perhaps $2 billion under a criminal case related to 1MDB.

Goldman Sachs chief executive David Solomon is among

 the company leaders who could see compensation

clawed back depending on probes over 1MDB

Under scrutiny

In January, Solomon apologized to Malaysia over the scandal and the involvement of former Goldman partner Tim Leissner, who had pleaded guilty to violating US anti-bribery and money laundering laws.

Solomon's statement stood out in tone from that of Blankfein, who said during the height of the financial crisis in 2009 that he was "doing God's work" in helping companies raise capital.

US authorities have accused a Malaysian financial intermediary, Low Taek Jho, along with Leissner and another former Goldman banker, Ng Chong Hwa, of conspiring to launder billions of dollars from 1 Malaysia Development Berhad, a sovereign wealth fund set up for development of the country. Goldman garnered $600 million in fees and revenues from 1MDB bond transactions.

US officials maintain that more than $2.7 billion in funds went to kickbacks and bribes.

Pointed questions facing Goldman Sachs include revelations it proceeded with its first transaction with 1MDB to finance a $1.75 billion purchase of power plants despite being warned by rival bank Lazard that the deal looked suspicious, according to a source.

Also, a division of the investment bank agreed to do business with Low Taek Jho even though he was rejected in 2011 from opening an account because bank officials could not determine the source of his wealth, a person familiar with the matter told AFP.

"The due diligence functions at Goldman Sachs fell apart," said Richard Bove, analyst at Odeon Capital and a frequent Goldman critic.

"If you're going to raise $6 billion for someone you better know everything there is to know about that someone."

The three transactions were presented to the bank's investment committees for Asia and firm-wide, which required 1MDB to pay a larger-than-usual fee because 1MDB was opposed to a syndicated loan, saddling Goldman with all of the risk, a source said.

Goldman declined comment and Lazard did not respond requests for comment.

Goldman says former Malaysia govt lied, after charges filed

Yahoo – AFP, December 18, 2018

Billions of dollars were allegedly stolen from the 1MDB fund and used to buy everything
from yachts to artwork, in an audacious fraud that involved former Malaysian leader
Najib Razak and contributed to his government's shock defeat at May elections (AFP
Photo/MOHD RASFAN)

Kuala Lumpur (AFP) - Goldman Sachs on Tuesday accused the former Malaysian government and state fund 1MDB of lying to the bank, after Kuala Lumpur charged the Wall Street titan over a massive financial scandal.

Malaysia's attorney-general Monday filed criminal charges against the US bank and two of its ex-employees over the alleged looting of 1MDB.

Billions of dollars were allegedly stolen from the fund and used to buy everything from yachts to artwork, in an audacious fraud that involved former Malaysian leader Najib Razak and contributed to his government's shock defeat at May elections.

Goldman has faced mounting questions about its role as the bank helped 1MDB raise $6.5 billion through a series of bond issues.

Monday's charges allege the bank's subsidiaries and the two ex-bankers, working with a shadowy Malaysian financier, misappropriated $2.7 billion, bribed officials and gave false statements as they helped 1MDB to raise the cash.

But Goldman said in a statement that "certain members of the former Malaysian government and 1MDB lied to Goldman Sachs, outside counsel and others about the use of proceeds from these transactions."

"1MDB, whose CEO and board reported directly to the prime minister at the time, also provided written assurances to Goldman Sachs for each transaction that no intermediaries were involved," it said.

The Malaysian financier named in the charges, Low Taek Jho, allegedly masterminded the fraud and had huge influence over 1MDB but held no official positions at the fund.

He has been hit with several rounds of charges but maintains his innocence.

The ex-Goldman bankers named in the charges are Tim Leissner, who worked as Southeast Asia chairman and managing director at Goldman, and Ng Chong Hwa, a managing director at the bank.

The bank added that it was "not afforded an opportunity to be heard prior to the filing of these charges against certain Goldman Sachs entities, which we intend to vigorously contest".

Malaysian authorities are seeking fines above the $2.7 billion allegedly misappropriated from the bond issues as well as the $600 million Goldman earned in fees, and long jail terms for those accused.

As well as Leissner, Ng and Low, Malaysian authorities charged former 1MDB employee Jasmine Loo Ai Swan.

The bank's shares fell 2.7 percent Monday after the charges were announced.

Criminally charged with looting Malaysia's 1MDB, Wall Street titan Goldman Sachs says former government and fund lied to the bankhttps://t.co/bfWW3mAnWn pic.twitter.com/gaOHyUml2c

— AFP news agency (@AFP) December 18, 2018

US charges ex-Goldman Sachs bankers in Malaysia graft scandal

Yahoo – AFP, John BIERS, November 2, 2018

The 1MDB scandal led to criminal charges against former Malaysian prime minister
 Najib Razak, seen being escorted to court by police in Kuala Lumpur in October
2018 (AFP Photo/MOHD RASFAN)

New York (AFP) - US officials have unveiled criminal charges against two former Goldman Sachs bankers over the scandal-plagued Malaysian sovereign wealth fund 1MDB, raising fresh questions about corporate culture at the prestigious investment bank.

The Justice Department arrested former Goldman Sachs banker Ng Chong Hwa in Malaysia on Thursday, and unsealed charges against Tim Leissner, another ex-Goldman banker, who has already pleaded guilty and agreed to pay $43.7 million in restitution of ill-gotten gains.

Both men were charged with conspiracy to commit bribery and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

The Justice Department also announced criminal charges against Low Taek Jho, an alleged mastermind and an intermediary to the Malaysian fund. US officials say he remains at large.

Goldman Sachs itself was not charged.

These are the first US criminal charges in the case which spawned investigations around the world.

Conspiring to launder billions

The 1MDB scandal has had a major impact in Malaysia, with allegations of involvement of top officials contributing to the downfall of the long-ruling coalition at elections in May.

Former prime minister Najib Razak has since been arrested and charged over the scandal. He denies any wrongdoing.

Factfile on the Malaysian 1MDB corruption allegations. (AFP Photo/
Laurence CHU, John SAEKI )

The men were charged with conspiring to launder billions of dollars from 1 Malaysia Development Berhad, a sovereign wealth fund set up for development of the country, and conspiring to bribe officials in Malaysia and Abu Dhabi, violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.

Low, in a statement through his spokesman, maintained his innocence.

"Mr. Low simply asks that the public keep an open mind regarding this case until all of the evidence comes to light, which he believes will vindicate him," it said.

Ng was also indicted for conspiring to violate the internal controls at Goldman Sachs, which underwrote about $6.5 billion in bonds issued by 1MDB, the US government said.

The funds were intended "for the benefit of the Malaysian people" but more than $2.7 billion went to kickbacks and bribes, according to the charges.

Goldman Sachs, which garnered $600 million in fees and revenues from three 1MDB bond transactions detailed in the indictments, has said previously it has received subpoenas and requests for information on the case from various governments and regulatory bodies.

Goldman Sachs, which said it is cooperating in the probe, was not named in the DOJ criminal documents, but was referred to as "financial institution #1."

The DOJ said Ng and Leissner repeatedly circumvented Goldman's oversight tools for countering fraud, adding that the "business culture" at the firm, "particularly in Southeast Asia, was highly focused on consummating deals."

The documents refer to a third unnamed Goldman official who is an Italian national. The banker, Andrea Vella, was put on leave in October, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Alleged mastermind Low Taek Jho, (C) pictured with Swizz Beatz and Alicia 

Keys at a charity ball in 2014, remains at large (AFP Photo/Dimitrios Kambouris)

Hiding Low's involvement

Under one scheme involving a 2012 "Project Magnolia" bond offering by 1MDB, Low allegedly told the ex-Goldman bankers they needed to bribe officials in Malaysia and Abu Dhabi to guarantee that the transaction went through.

Hundreds of millions of dollars in bribes were subsequently paid to officials in Malaysia and Abu Dhabi. After the bond transaction was executed, more than $500 million of the bond proceeds were misappropriated into shell companies controlled by Low, Leissner, Ng and other co-conspirators, the government alleged.

Some of the funds went to finance the movie, "The Wolf of Wall Street," a 2013 Oscar-nominated film about Jordan Belfort, a corrupt stockbroker who was sent to prison for fraud, the government said.

Ng and Leissner's efforts in the scheme dated to 2009, when they began cultivating a relationship with Low, who allegedly "worked as an intermediary in relation to 1MDB and other foreign government officials" but did not hold a formal position at 1MDB and was never employed by the government.

Ng, a managing director at Goldman, and Leissner, who worked as Southeast Asia chairman and managing director at Goldman, sought on three occasions to make Low a formal client, but were rebuffed because officials in the compliance group had "concerns" about the source of the person's wealth and deemed he would not be a "suitable" client.

As the bond offerings proceeded, the two men concealed Low's involvement from Goldman Sachs officials.

Leissner is free on a $20 million bond and pleaded guilty before a US judge in August, in Brooklyn Federal Court. He is cooperating with DOJ investigators, The Wall Street Journal reported.

Lawyers for Leissner did not respond to requests for comment. Low is represented by Marc Kasowitz, an attorney who has formerly represented US President Donald Trump, a DOJ spokesman said.

Wife of ex-Malaysian PM arrested by anti-graft agency

Yahoo – AFP, October 3, 2018

Rosmah Mansor was arrested in relation to money laundering investigations,
while husband Najib Razak has already been hit with a string of charges
including corruption (AFP Photo/Mohd RASFAN)

Kuala Lumpur (AFP) - Rosmah Mansor, the flamboyant wife of Malaysia's former prime minister, was arrested Wednesday by the country's anti-graft agency over a multi-billion-dollar scandal.

"Rosmah has been arrested," her lawyer K. Kumaraendran told AFP after she was questioned for hours at the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).

Her husband Najib Razak, 65, has already been hit with a string of charges including corruption and money laundering and is out on bail following his spectacular fall from power in May elections.

The MACC in a statement said it arrested Rosmah, 66, in relation to money laundering investigations after getting approval from state prosecutors.

"Following this, Rosmah will face a number of charges," it said, adding she will be brought to court early on Thursday to be charged.

She is expected to spend the night at the MACC headquarters located in the administrative capital Putrajaya outside Kuala Lumpur.

Malaysia ex-PM arrested over $628 mn linked to 1MDB, to be charged

Yahoo – AFP, Sam Reeves, 19 September 2018

Malaysia's former prime minister Najib Razak, seen here in August, is facing
allegations huge sums were looted from state investment fund 1MDB

Malaysia's toppled leader Najib Razak was arrested Wednesday and will be charged over allegations that $628 million linked to state investment fund 1MDB ended up in his personal bank accounts, officials said.

Allegations that Najib and his cronies looted huge sums from the investment vehicle were a major factor in the shock defeat of his long-ruling coalition in elections in May, at the hands of a reformist alliance headed by Mahathir Mohamad.

Mahathir, 93, in his second stint as premier after coming out of retirement to take on his ex-protege Najib, has reopened probes into 1MDB that were shut down by the former government, and vowed to bring Najib to justice.

Since losing power, Najib has already been arrested and hit with seven charges related to claims he pocketed some $10 million from a former unit of 1MDB.

However his arrest Wednesday was more significant as it related to a central allegation in the long-running scandal -- that huge sums from the fund flowed into his bank accounts before a hotly contested election in 2013.

The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission said in a statement that it had detained Najib as part of its investigations into the fund and "the entry of 2.6 billion ringgit ($628 million) into his personal account".

Najib will appear in court Thursday afternoon where he faces several charges related to abuse of power, the anti-corruption commission said.

James Chin, a Malaysia expert from the University of Tasmania, said Najib's current arrest was "much more significant" than his previous one.

"I think the Malaysian people will be very, very happy. There were complaints that the government was not moving fast enough on 1MDB," he told AFP.

Rotten ruling elite

When reports about the bank transfers surfaced in 2015, they represented a turning point in the 1MDB scandal and dramatically raised pressure on Najib and his inner circle.

The attorney-general later cleared Najib of any wrongdoing, saying the money was a personal donation from the Saudi royal family, and closed down domestic investigations.

But allegations related to wrongdoing at 1MDB continued to multiply and the leader lurched sharply to the right.

He sacked critics in government, jailed political opponents and introduced increasingly authoritarian laws that analysts said were aimed at silencing any criticism to his rule.

Analysts thought Najib's Barisan Nasional coalition, which had ruled Malaysia uninterrupted since independence from Britain in 1957, could never be beaten. But Mahathir capitalised on anger at the 1MDB scandal, and disillusionment at race-based politics in the multi-ethnic country, to push them from power.

Najib, his family and cronies were accused of using money stolen from 1MDB to buy everything from high-end real estate in the United States to pricey artworks. He and his luxury-loving wife Rosman Mansor became figures of hatred.

The US Department of Justice, which is seeking to recover items allegedly bought with stolen 1MDB cash in America, estimates that $4.5 billion in total was looted from the fund.

Following Najib's election loss, police seized a vast trove of items -- including expensive handbags and jewellery -- from properties linked to him with an estimated value of up to $273 million.

Investigations into 1MDB have been moving swiftly. Last month a luxury yacht allegedly bought by a playboy financier with a central role in the scandal was returned to Malaysia after being handed over by Indonesia, which impounded it following a DoJ request.

Malaysia's former prime minister Najib Razak, seen here in August, is facing allegations huge sums were looted from state investment fund 1MDB.

Treasure trove seized from ex-Malaysia PM worth up to $273 million

Yahoo – AFP, Patrick Lee, June 27, 2018

The raids on several properties linked to ex-PM Najib Razak netted 12,000 pieces
 of jewellery, bags containing almost $30 million in cash and hundreds of watches
and pairs of sunglasses (AFP Photo/Mohd RASFAN)

A vast trove of valuables seized in raids on properties linked to Malaysia's scandal-mired former leader, including cash, jewellery and luxury handbags, are worth up to $273 million, police said Wednesday.

The searches, part of investigations into scandal-hit sovereign wealth fund 1MDB, netted 12,000 pieces of jewellery, bags containing almost $30 million in cash across 26 different currencies, more than 400 watches worth $19.3 million, and other high-end designer goods.

"I think this is the biggest seizure in Malaysian history," said Amar Singh, the police's head of commercial crime investigations, after officials completed the mammoth task of valuing all the items they uncovered in raids around Kuala Lumpur last month.

He said the items were worth between 910 million ringgit ($225 million) and 1.1 billion ringgit ($273 million).

The official salary of Najib Razak, the former premier, while in office was 22,827 ringgit ($5,670) a month.

Allegations of massive corruption were a major factor behind last month's shock election loss of Najib's long-ruling coalition to a reformist alliance headed by Mahathir Mohamad.

Najib and his cronies were accused of plundering billions of dollars from 1MDB to buy everything from US real estate to artworks. Najib and the fund deny any wrongdoing.

His luxury-loving wife Rosmah Mansor became a lightning rod for public anger due to her vast collection of handbags and jewels, and her reported love of overseas shopping trips.

The mind-boggling collection of luxury items listed by police will increase public anger at the former first couple, whose spendthrift ways came to symbolise the decadence and rot in the Barisan Nasional coalition which ruled the country since independence from Britain in 1957 until its ouster last month.

Malaysian police say the raids on properties linked to the former prime minister 

led to the biggest property seizure in the country's history (AFP Photo/Mohd RASFAN)

Anger at allegations of graft swirling around Najib and his inner circle had become particularly acute in recent years, as many middle-class Malaysians increasingly struggled with stagnating wages and living standards.

Tiaras, sunglasses, watches

The items were seized in raids on six premises linked to Najib, including luxury apartments in Kuala Lumpur and his main residence in an upmarket part of the city.

The huge collection of jewellery included 1,400 necklaces, 2,200 rings and 14 tiaras. The most expensive item of jewellery was a necklace, which was estimated to be worth 6.4 million ringgit ($1.5 million), Amar said.

A total of 567 handbags were also seized, including 272 Hermes bags worth 51.3 million ringgit, police said, adding that the value of the other handbags was still being calculated.

A total of 423 watches worth 78 million ringgit were also discovered, along with 234 pairs of sunglasses.

It took officials five weeks, from May 21 to June 25, to count up the items and calculate their value, Amar said.

When items are uncovered in raids, police typically try to put a value on them on site, Amar said. But this was not possible with the Najib-linked searches due to the vast quantity of valuables.

"The next best option is to seal the items, to bring them back to a secure place and ensure that these items are not compromised," he said.

New Prime Minister Mahathir, who has just started his second stint as premier at the age of 92, has reopened investigations into 1MDB which were shut down by Najib, and has vowed the former leader will be charged.

Since their election loss, Najib and Rosmah have been questioned by anti-graft investigators over allegations that money linked to the state fund ended up in Najib's bank accounts.

The US Justice Department, which is seeking to recover items allegedly bought with stolen 1MDB cash in America, estimates that $4.5 billion was looted from the fund.

Malaysian playboy financier in cross-hairs after poll upset

Yahoo – AFP, Sam Reeves, 27 May 2018

Jho Low led a high-rolling lifestyle after allegedly stealing huge sums from
1MDB, reportedly spending vast sums in New York's hottest nightspots

Baby-faced playboy Jho Low, a financier at the centre of Malaysia’s 1MDB mega-scandal, may find his days of hobnobbing with celebrities and splurging on property and art are numbered as the new government pledges to bring him to justice.

Suspected of being a key figure in one of the world's biggest frauds along with ousted leader Najib Razak and his cronies, the chubby, bespectacled businessman has become a lightning rod for public fury at the controversy.

He led a high-rolling lifestyle after allegedly stealing huge sums from 1MDB. He hung out with celebrities such as Leonardo DiCaprio, partied with Paris Hilton, and reportedly spent vast sums in New York's hottest nightspots.

As investigations into the controversy accelerated, the Malaysian took to a luxury yacht allegedly bought with stolen cash and sailed around Asia, until the vessel was seized off Bali recently as part of 1MDB-linked probes.

The Wall Street Journal reported that he was on the Thai holiday island of Phuket earlier this month awaiting the election results. His current whereabouts are unclear.

But time could be running out for the flamboyant 36-year-old after Najib's scandal-mired coalition suffered a shock defeat at the May 9 poll in large part due to public anger at 1MDB.

The new government, headed by Najib's ex-mentor Mahathir Mohamad, has reopened probes into the sophisticated fraud and wants to haul Jho Low -- whose full name is Low Taek Jho -- back to Malaysia.

Abdul Razak Idris, a former senior officer from the anti-graft agency which led probes into the scandal until they were shut down under Najib, said he believed Low was the mastermind.

"He must be arrested and brought back to Malaysia so that we can bring back all the money parked abroad," he told AFP.

Low, who held no official positions at 1MDB but is believed to have exerted great influence over the fund, has previously denied any wrongdoing. He could not be contacted for this article.

Jho Low took to luxury yacht Equanimity, which was allegedly bought with stolen 

cash, and sailed around Asia until the vessel was seized off Bali recently as 

part of 1MDB-linked probes

Precarious position

In a first move aimed at pressuring him, Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng on Friday instructed tax authorities to probe Low and his family -- many of whom remain in Malaysia -- over 1MDB.

Malaysian social media lit up with delight at the prospect that a man who allegedly plundered state coffers was now being aggressively pursued.

"Jho Low is the key to all this 1MDB debacle," read one post on Facebook. "Catching him is like catching the one ring that rules them all."

Low's current precarious position is a far cry from the image he once projected of an urbane, well-connected investment manager.

He was educated at elite British school Harrow, and during his time in England befriended Riza Aziz, Najib's stepson, a friendship that helped him get close to Malaysia's former ruling family.

He studied in the US and moved to New York, where reports of his profligate spending began to multiply.

The Department of Justice, which has launched lawsuits to seize assets allegedly bought with stolen 1MDB cash in the US, alleges $400 million from the fund was sent to America "for the personal gratification of Low and his associates".

This is just one part of the vast fraud. The DoJ claims that some $4.5 billion was stolen from the fund, which was set up in 2009 and overseen by Najib. Najib and 1MDB deny any wrongdoing.

As well as the yacht, Low is alleged to have used stolen cash to buy artworks by Monet and Van Gogh, high-end real estate and to give gifts to celebrities including DiCaprio and Australian model Miranda Kerr.

They have both turned the gifts over to US authorities and are not accused of any wrongdoing.

In a rare media interview with Malaysia's Star newspaper in 2010, Low complained of being depicted as someone who led "an excessive kind of lifestyle".

"Ultimately, I am Malaysian," he said. "I am one who does not forget my country and I think there is a lot we can do for Malaysia."