DOCSLIB.ORG

'Jho Low Was in Najib's Inner Circle'

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
'Jho Low Was in Najib's Inner Circle' ‘JHO LOW WAS IN NAJIB’S INNER CIRCLE' ''I can say this (Najib agreed) because Former special aide when Azlin double-checked, Najib said he says fugitive knew and had agreed to it.” Amhari said when he was appointed businessman worked Najib’s special officer in 2008, Low texted to congratulate him. behind the scenes for “He said: ‘Bro, I heard you are in TPM’s (deputy prime minister’s) office. ex-prime minister Congratulations. We will be closely in touch.’” Amhari claimed Low had used him to RAHMAT KHAIRULRIJAL get close to Azlin, who was also a Najib AND KHAIRAH N. KARIM loyalist. KUALA LUMPUR “He used me to set up a highly con­ [email protected] fidential meeting between him and my boss (Azlin) at Prince Hotel. HE High Court here yesterday “They discussed issues, including high­ heard that fugitive businessman ly confidential matters during the meet­ Low Taek Jho, or Jho Low, had ing, which took place at night in a suite “extraordinary powers” as he room.” workedT behind the scenes for former Amhari described Low as the master- prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak in mind behind the inception of the Tereng­ government-to-government negotia­ ganu Investment Authority (TIA), before tions, international relations and fund­ it was renamed 1MDB. ing. He said Low had attended the meeting Najib’s former special officer, Datuk with Terengganu ruler Sultan Mizan Amhari Efendi Nazaruddin, said this Zainal Abidin at Istana Terengganu when he took the stand as the eighth in the state capital to brief him about prosecution witness in the 1Malaysia TIA. Development Bhd (1MDB) trial yester­ “I was representing PMO and Low was day. representing the TIA board. Amhari, who worked for Najib for 10 “The meeting was chaired by the state years, said Low was close to Najib’s family, ruler. especially Najib’s wife, Datin Seri Rosmah “It was an unofficial meeting and Najib Mansor. was not there,” Amhari said, adding that “My first meeting with Low was at a Low later briefed him about TIA in the restaurant in George Town, Penang, after kitchen of Low’s house. I was promoted as economic director in Amhari said Low played an active part the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) in in doing damage control when the 1MDB March 2014. issue was reported by international and “Donning a batik T-shirt, Jho Low was local media. talkative and indicated that he was in the “The issue did not affect Najib as most inner circle of the former prime minister’s of the articles focused on Low’s lavish family. lifestyle. “He knew Najib through the latter’s “However, in early 2015, Najib was fi­ stepson, Riza Shahriz Abdul Aziz, or Riza nally linked to 1MDB. The PMO had to step Aziz, as they had known each other since in.” they were teenagers. Amhari said Low had given instructions “Rosmah had no issue with Low being to Azlin on how to cover up the issue. close to her family. Proceedings will continue today before “She had called Low numerous times, judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah. although the gist of the conversations Najib is facing four charges of having were not known,” he said when reading used his position to obtain gratification his 77-page witness statement. totalling RM2.3 billion in 1MDB funds and Amhari said most of the instructions 21 counts of money laundering involving from Low must be followed as they were the same money. agreed by Najib beforehand. The former finance minister is alleged “I worked for Najib for 10 years. to have committed the offences at AmIs- “He would usually meet Low to discuss lamic Bank Bhd, No. 55, Jalan Raja Chu- issues, including confidential matters. lan, Bukit Ceylon, here, between Feb 24, “Sometimes, my boss, the late Datuk 2011 and Dec 19, 2014. Azlin Alias, who was Najib’s chief special Najib is alleged to have committed officer, and I would receive confidential the money laundering offences at the instructions from Low, to which Najib had same bank between March 22 and Aug 30, agreed. 2013..
Load more

Recommended publications
  • 2019 FCPA/Anti-Corruption Year in Review
    FCPA/Anti-Corruption Developments: 2019 Year in Review January 21, 2020 FCPA/Anti-Corruption Developments: 2019 Year in Review Lucinda A. Low and Brittany Prelogar (eds.)1 Introduction US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) enforcement authorities announced a steady stream of individual and corporate enforcement matters throughout 2019, some with eye-popping fines. Overall, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) reported 50 FCPA-related actions (including 31 by the DOJ and 19 by the SEC) over the course of the year. The $2.9 billion in total fines, penalties, and disgorgement imposed in corporate FCPA settlements in 2019 nearly matched the record-breaking $2.91 billion imposed in 2018 in such matters. The DOJ also announced a slew of new charges against individuals and racked up a number of trial victories in existing cases. Mega settlements reached by two companies made up nearly two-thirds of the $2.9 billion total corporate penalties imposed in 2019. In the first quarter of the year, Mobile TeleSystems PJSC (MTS) agreed to pay $850 million in penalties and disgorgement to resolve charges against it, joining the ranks of fellow companies Telia and VimpelCom among the top FCPA fines to date for conduct relating to the Uzbek telecommunications sector. In a strong book-end to the year, Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (Ericsson) and its subsidiary, Ericsson Egypt Ltd. (Ericsson Egypt), agreed to pay more than $1 billion in penalties and disgorgement to resolve DOJ and SEC investigations for conduct in multiple countries. Enforcement against individuals, especially by the DOJ, was also particularly robust in 2019.
    [Show full text]
  • ASD-Covert-Foreign-Money.Pdf
    overt C Foreign Covert Money Financial loopholes exploited by AUGUST 2020 authoritarians to fund political interference in democracies AUTHORS: Josh Rudolph and Thomas Morley © 2020 The Alliance for Securing Democracy Please direct inquiries to The Alliance for Securing Democracy at The German Marshall Fund of the United States 1700 18th Street, NW Washington, DC 20009 T 1 202 683 2650 E [email protected] This publication can be downloaded for free at https://securingdemocracy.gmfus.org/covert-foreign-money/. The views expressed in GMF publications and commentary are the views of the authors alone. Cover and map design: Kenny Nguyen Formatting design: Rachael Worthington Alliance for Securing Democracy The Alliance for Securing Democracy (ASD), a bipartisan initiative housed at the German Marshall Fund of the United States, develops comprehensive strategies to deter, defend against, and raise the costs on authoritarian efforts to undermine and interfere in democratic institutions. ASD brings together experts on disinformation, malign finance, emerging technologies, elections integrity, economic coercion, and cybersecurity, as well as regional experts, to collaborate across traditional stovepipes and develop cross-cutting frame- works. Authors Josh Rudolph Fellow for Malign Finance Thomas Morley Research Assistant Contents Executive Summary �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 1 Introduction and Methodology ��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������
    [Show full text]
  • THE UNREALIZED MAHATHIR-ANWAR TRANSITIONS Social Divides and Political Consequences
    THE UNREALIZED MAHATHIR-ANWAR TRANSITIONS Social Divides and Political Consequences Khoo Boo Teik TRENDS IN SOUTHEAST ASIA ISSN 0219-3213 TRS15/21s ISSUE ISBN 978-981-5011-00-5 30 Heng Mui Keng Terrace 15 Singapore 119614 http://bookshop.iseas.edu.sg 9 7 8 9 8 1 5 0 1 1 0 0 5 2021 21-J07781 00 Trends_2021-15 cover.indd 1 8/7/21 12:26 PM TRENDS IN SOUTHEAST ASIA 21-J07781 01 Trends_2021-15.indd 1 9/7/21 8:37 AM The ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute (formerly Institute of Southeast Asian Studies) is an autonomous organization established in 1968. It is a regional centre dedicated to the study of socio-political, security, and economic trends and developments in Southeast Asia and its wider geostrategic and economic environment. The Institute’s research programmes are grouped under Regional Economic Studies (RES), Regional Strategic and Political Studies (RSPS), and Regional Social and Cultural Studies (RSCS). The Institute is also home to the ASEAN Studies Centre (ASC), the Singapore APEC Study Centre and the Temasek History Research Centre (THRC). ISEAS Publishing, an established academic press, has issued more than 2,000 books and journals. It is the largest scholarly publisher of research about Southeast Asia from within the region. ISEAS Publishing works with many other academic and trade publishers and distributors to disseminate important research and analyses from and about Southeast Asia to the rest of the world. 21-J07781 01 Trends_2021-15.indd 2 9/7/21 8:37 AM THE UNREALIZED MAHATHIR-ANWAR TRANSITIONS Social Divides and Political Consequences Khoo Boo Teik ISSUE 15 2021 21-J07781 01 Trends_2021-15.indd 3 9/7/21 8:37 AM Published by: ISEAS Publishing 30 Heng Mui Keng Terrace Singapore 119614 [email protected] http://bookshop.iseas.edu.sg © 2021 ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute, Singapore All rights reserved.
    [Show full text]
  • MCA - Three Strikes and You're Out! Malaysiakini.Com April 8, 2013 by K Temoc
    MCA - three strikes and you're out! MalaysiaKini.com April 8, 2013 By K Temoc After the 1969 general election the late Dr Ismail Abdul Rahman, then deputy prime minister, was known to have said, “MCA dan MIC nampaknya tidak mahu hidup dan tidak mahu pula mati”, using a Malay idiom ‘hidup segan, mati tak mahu’ (figuratively ‘neither alive nor dead’) to sneeringly describe a virtually political-defunct Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA). MCA had then been dealt its first strike in the game of politics. Undoubtedly May 1969 was a bad time for the MCA, losing in disastrous measures to a loose coalition of the (original) Gerakan Party, a then very new Democratic Action Party (DAP), the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) (then under the Seenivasagam brothers), and even Parti Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS). But embarrassing as it was for MCA, it wasn't its worst moment yet, because successes and failures are part and parcel of politics, and while depressing, we expected the MCA to pick itself up again. And it did. In 1985, during the acrimonious dispute for the party’s presidential post between Tan Koon Swan and Neo Yee Pan, MCA disgraced itself in no uncertain terms by having the then deputy prime minister, the late Ghafar Baba and a Malay, occupied the MCA’s top position to moderate a settlement between the two Chinese contenders. That incident would not have been disgracefully controversial if the MCA had been a multiracial political party. That it was, and still is, a Chinese race-based party, in having a Malay as its head, no matter how temporary it had been, was certainly a dubious Malaysian first, an utterly shameful indictment on MCA’s inability to represent itself, let alone the Chinese community.
    [Show full text]
  • The 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) Scandal: Exploring Malaysia's 2018 General Elections and the Case for Sovereign Wealth Funds
    Seattle Pacific University Digital Commons @ SPU Honors Projects University Scholars Spring 6-7-2021 The 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) Scandal: Exploring Malaysia's 2018 General Elections and the Case for Sovereign Wealth Funds Chea-Mun Tan Seattle Pacific University Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.spu.edu/honorsprojects Part of the Economics Commons, and the Political Science Commons Recommended Citation Tan, Chea-Mun, "The 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) Scandal: Exploring Malaysia's 2018 General Elections and the Case for Sovereign Wealth Funds" (2021). Honors Projects. 131. https://digitalcommons.spu.edu/honorsprojects/131 This Honors Project is brought to you for free and open access by the University Scholars at Digital Commons @ SPU. It has been accepted for inclusion in Honors Projects by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ SPU. The 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) Scandal: Exploring Malaysia’s 2018 General Elections and the Case for Sovereign Wealth Funds by Chea-Mun Tan First Reader, Dr. Doug Downing Second Reader, Dr. Hau Nguyen A project submitted in partial fulfillMent of the requireMents of the University Scholars Honors Project Seattle Pacific University 2021 Tan 2 Abstract In 2015, the former PriMe Minister of Malaysia, Najib Razak, was accused of corruption, eMbezzleMent, and fraud of over $700 million USD. Low Taek Jho, the former financier of Malaysia, was also accused and dubbed the ‘mastermind’ of the 1MDB scandal. As one of the world’s largest financial scandals, this paper seeks to explore the political and economic iMplications of 1MDB through historical context and a critical assessMent of governance. Specifically, it will exaMine the economic and political agendas of former PriMe Ministers Najib Razak and Mahathir MohaMad.
    [Show full text]
  • FINANCIAL CRIME DIGEST July 2020
    FINANCIAL CRIME DIGEST July 2020 Diligent analysis. Powering business.™ aperio-intelligence.com FINANCIAL CRIME DIGEST | JULY 2020 ISSN: 2632-8364 About Us Founded in 2014, Aperio Intelligence is a specialist, independent corporate intelligence frm, headquartered in London. Collectively our team has decades of experience in undertaking complex investigations and intelligence analysis. We speak over twenty languages in- house, including all major European languages, as well as Russian, Arabic, Farsi, Mandarin and Cantonese. We have completed more than 3,000 assignments over the last three years, involving some 150 territories. Our client base includes a broad range of leading international fnancial institutions, law frms and multinationals. Our role is to help identify and understand fnancial crime, contacts, cultivated over decades, who support us regularly integrity and reputational risks, which can arise from a lack in undertaking local enquiries on a confdential and discreet of knowledge of counterparties or local jurisdictions, basis. As a specialist provider of corporate intelligence, we enabling our clients to make better informed decisions. source information and undertake research to the highest legal and ethical standards. Our independence means we Our due diligence practice helps clients comply with anti- avoid potential conficts of interest that can affect larger bribery and corruption, anti-money laundering and other organisations. relevant fnancial crime legislation, such as sanctions compliance, or the evaluation of tax evasion or sanctions We work on a “Client First” basis, founded on a strong risks. Our services support the on-boarding, periodic or commitment to quality control, confdentiality and respect retrospective review of clients or third parties. for time constraints.
    [Show full text]
  • 1MDB – Bradley Hope
    TRACE International Podcast 1MDB – Bradley Hope [00:00:06] Welcome back to Bribe, Swindle or Steal. I'm Alexandra Wrage, and today we're going to explore the 1MDB scandal out of Malaysia. Apparently, every country gets to have its own Watergate these days. We recently discussed the Anglo-Leasing scandal as Kenya's Watergate, and 1MDB has been described as Malaysia's Watergate. We're speaking today with a reporter who has done the best work on this story. He's a financial reporter for The Wall Street Journal. He was a correspondent in New York when he began reporting on 1MDB but is now based in London. He has reported previously from Abu Dhabi, Cairo and Beirut, and it was a great pleasure to have him join us at Cambridge last year for The Greed Project. Bradley Hope, welcome to the podcast. [00:00:47] Thank you very much. [00:00:48] Thank you for joining me and taking the time to do this. You've written a great deal on 1MDB, but you wrote one piece early on, "Malaysia's 1MDB Decoded," so perhaps we can start there. [00:01:00] Well, actually, I would like to say at the outset that this is a big Wall Street Journal team effort, so it's not just me by myself. Especially my colleague in Hong Kong, Tom Wright, and I have been working on this a lot for two years now. Another thing to mention is that everything in this case is still alleged. There is no criminal charges, and there's no indication there is criminal charges.
    [Show full text]
  • Lawyers' Litigation Forecasts Play an Integral Role in the Justice System
    International Relations and Diplomacy, April 2015, Vol. 3, No. 4, 229-264 D doi: 10.17265/2328-2134/2015.04.001 DAVID PUBLISHING Model, Methodology, and Forecast: Expert Data in Assessing Political Risk in Malaysia Llewellyn D. Howell Thunderbird School of Global Management at ASU, Glendale, AZ, USA This study is about Malaysia‟s investment environment. I‟ve undertaken its writing in part as a reflection on my own involvement with Malaysia over more than half a century (from Malaya in 1963). The study also brings to bear a structure for analysis drawn from the field of political risk analysis. I have been involved with formal (corporate) political risk assessment since 1979 and bring that experience into the discussion that follows. I have published extensively on both Malaysia and political risk. Some of these publications are cited below. Political risk assessment depends on experts on the countries that they examine. I don‟t usually refer to myself as an “expert” but rather as a specialist. However, the common reference in political risk studies is to data generated by experts. In the paper below I discuss the nature of political risk assessment, Malaysia, my own credentials that have gotten me into the political risk business, and three political risk assessment methodologies, with the results for Malaysia for each. I give emphasis to the assessment that I have done using the Economist method, for reasons that I provide below. I was able to incorporate interviews of 35 professional subjects in Malaysia in February 2014 in which they were each able to rate Malaysia using the Economist method.
    [Show full text]
  • Briefing 30 December 2018
    Briefing 30 December 2018 Billion dollar whales, Saudi Princes and video games – why fraud, corruption, regulatory and political risks are inseparable We need to reconsider the concept of “due diligence”. This is not to deny that the rigid processes that underpin due diligence are an essential part of any acquisition, merger or largescale investment but the very inflexibility of these processes can prevent companies and investors from seeing the real risks that are inherent in their proposed transaction. This is even more the case today where risks can no longer be separated and treated independently but interact with each other in ways that cannot be understood without being able to grasp the broader picture. The due diligence process should be about an intelligent assessment of risk that enables investors to either structure a transaction to prevent potential pitfalls and enhance opportunities, or to see that the transaction itself risks destroying value rather than enhancing it. In the new world of multiple risks that we live in we look at what can go wrong and why. Fishing for a billion dollar whale In the 1990s economists thought we were moving towards a global, liberal, free market dominated by private companies and investors, but it hasn’t worked out like that. State-owned companies and state- controlled investment funds have become increasingly important, and they constitute a challenge to the traditional way of carrying out due diligence. One case that demonstrates the problems in spectacular fashion (and is currently causing great damage to the reputation of Goldman Sachs) is the enormous fraud that took place at the Malaysian state investment fund 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB).
    [Show full text]
  • Asia Trends # 4 Article 7
    MALAISIE 31 MAI 1974 Établissement des relations diplomatiques entre la Malaisie et la République populaire de Chine, une première au sein de l'ASEAN. 7 2009 La Malaisie devient Le Tigre face au Dragon : vers une redéfinition le premier partenaire commercial de la Chine de la relation sino-malaisienne dans un parmi les pays de l'ASEAN. contexte politique inédit SEPTEMBRE 2013 Xi Jinping annonce son | VICTOR GERMAIN projet des Nouvelles routes de la soie. D'ordinaire, la politique étrangère de la Malaisie 9 AOÛT 2017 ne suscite que peu d’intérêt parmi sa population. Lancement par Najib Pourtant, la visite officielle en République populaire Razak des travaux de l'East Coast Rail Link (ECRL), de Chine (RPC), entre le 17 et le 21 août 2018, de projet d'infrastructures son nouveau Premier ministre Mahathir Mohamad ferroviaires lié aux a été au centre de toutes les attentions. Attendu Nouvelles routes de la soie. depuis le mois de mai, ce voyage devait permettre de clarifier les positions du gouvernement malaisien 9 MAI 2018 quant à la mise en œuvre dans le pays de trois méga Défaite historique du Barisan Nasional ; projets chinois liés aux Nouvelles routes de la soie : Mahathir Mohamad la voie ferrée East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) et les deux remplace Najib Razak pipelines Multi-Product Pipeline (MPP) et Trans-Sabah comme Premier ministre de la Malaisie. Gas Pipeline (TSGP). 3 JUILLET 2018 Jusqu’au 9 mai 2018, une telle clarification n’avait Suspension des travaux pas lieu d’être, la Malaisie étant l’une des plus fidèles de l'ECRL.
    [Show full text]
  • Anti-Money Laundering 2020 a Practical Cross-Border Insight Into Anti-Money Laundering Law Third Edition
    Anti-Money Laundering 2020 A practical cross-border insight into anti-money laundering law Third Edition Featuring contributions from: Allen & Gledhill LLP Delecroix-Gublin King & Wood Mallesons Allen & Gledhill (Myanmar) Co., Ltd. DQ Advocates Limited Linklaters LLP Anagnostopoulos Enache Pirtea & Associates Marxer & Partner Attorneys at Law Ballard Spahr LLP Galicia Abogados, S.C. Morais Leitão, Galvão Teles, Soares da Silva & Beccar Varela Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP Associados Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP Herbert Smith Freehills LLP Nakasaki Law Firm CHR Legal JahaeRaymakers Nyman Gibson Miralis City Legal Joyce Roysen Advogados Rahmat Lim & Partners Cohen & Gresser (UK) LLP Kellerhals Carrard SMM Legal Maciak Mataczyński Soemadipradja & Taher ISBN 978-1-83918-043-9 ISSN 2515-4192 Published by 59 Tanner Street London SE1 3PL United Kingdom Anti-Money Laundering 2020 +44 207 367 0720 [email protected] www.iclg.com Third Edition Group Publisher Rory Smith Publisher Jon Martin Editor Contributing Editors: Amy Norton Joel M. Cohen & Stephanie L. Brooker Senior Editor Sam Friend Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP Head of Production Suzie Levy Chief Media Officer Fraser Allan CEO Jason Byles Printed by Ashford Colour Press Ltd. Cover image www.istockphoto.com ©2020 Global Legal Group Limited. All rights reserved. Unauthorised reproduction by any means, Strategic Partners digital or analogue, in whole or in part, is strictly forbidden. Disclaimer This publication is for general information purposes only. It does not purport to provide comprehen- sive full legal or other advice. Global Legal Group Ltd. and the contributors accept no responsibility for losses that may arise from reliance upon information contained in this publication.
    [Show full text]
  • Safe Hands? Private Equity Targets Emerging Asia’S Succession Planning Opportunity Page 19
    Asia’s Private Equity News Source avcj.com November 04 2014 Volume 27 Number 41 Safe hands? Private equity targets emerging Asia’s succession planning opportunity Page 19 PE returns: On target? Page 11 Names: A brand issue Page 29 VC pioneer Tim Draper Page 39 CONFERENCE SPECIAL ISSUE AVCJ PRIVATE EQUITY AND VENTURE CAPITAL FORUM HONG KONG 2014 Anything is possible if you work with the right partner Unlocking liquidity for private equity investors www.collercapital.com London, New York, Hong Kong CONTENTS EDITOR’S VIEWPOINT 31 Eastern perspective: Feng shui masters rate private equity firms’ Chinese names 05 Asian PE will continue to grow in asset terms, but slower and in multiple directions 33 Western perspective: How branding consultants help find the magic formula NEWS 07 Carlyle, China Life, DCM, Evercore, Hony, TECHNOLOGY J-Star, SoftBank, PEP, Warburg Pincus The Palo Alto prescription PERFORMANCE 35 Asia’s innovation hubs are aspiring to become the next Silicon Valley, but some Under pressure are more global than others 11 To varying degrees unimpressed by Asian PE performance, LPs are asking more of 38 Venture capitalists want government to their managers on the operations side facilitate start-up development, not try and pick winners directly SUCCESSION PLANNING Family ties INDUSTRY INTERVIEWS 19 Private equity investors eye buyout opportunities as emerging Asia’s aging 16 Olver Gottschalg of HEC School of founders struggle to find credible heirs Managment talks PE performance 21 Case study: Mekong Capital and Vietnam’s 27 Howard Marks of Oaktree Capital AA Corporation Management on risk and reward 25 Case study: Bain Capital and Dominos Japan 39 Tim Draper of Draper Associates on exporting the Silicon Valley model BRANDING What’s in a name? 29 PE firms attach increasing importance to finding the right name.
    [Show full text]