A FEDERAL Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agent who was investigating the 1Malaysia Development Board (1MDB) case alleged that former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak had misappropriated US$756 mil (RM3.18 bil) from the scandal-plagued sovereign wealth fund.
According to Malaysiakini, agent Eric Van Dorn also told the court that fugitive businessman Low Taek Jhow, or Jho Low, had embezzled US$1.42 bil (RM5.97 bil) as well.
The funds were alleged to have been misappropriated from the US$6.5 bil raised via bond exercises 1MDB performed with Goldman Sachs.
Van Dorn was testifying in the graft trial involving former Goldman banker Roger Ng, which is now taking place in New York.
Apart from Najib and Low, it was claimed that former International Petroleum Investment Co managing director Khadem al-Qubaisi also received US$472.8 mil from the bond exercise.
Arab donor?
Ng received US$35.1 mil, while star prosecution witness Tim Leissner received US$73.4 mil, Van Dorn added. The FBI officer said he had tracked down how the bond funds were siphoned off to at least 16 recipients.
Previously, investigators had established that Najib had received US$681 mil from the 1MDB’s third bond raising exercise, which was conducted in 2013.
During the trial, Leissner had alleged that the funds were by Najib to finance the year’s general election. On that note, investigators also revealed that Najib later had returned US$620 mil of the funds.
Earlier on, Najib claimed the balance funds were returned to his “Arab donors”, but investigators mentioned that it was instead returned to accounts linked to Low. – March 15, 2022
