US Justice Department indicts Jho Low and Goldman Sachs banker Roger Ng Chong Hwa in 1MDB scandal
- Former 1MDB middleman Jho Low maintains his innocence but remains at large, while Roger Ng has been arrested in Malaysia
- Another Goldman banker, Tim Leissner, pleaded guilty and will forfeit US$43 million for conspiring to launder cash and violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act
US prosecutors unveiled criminal charges on Thursday against two former Goldman Sachs bankers and Malaysian financier Low Taek Jho tied to the alleged theft of billions from Malaysian sovereign wealth fund 1MDB.
Prosecutors in the US Attorney’s Office in Brooklyn announced that Tim Leissner, former partner for Goldman Sachs in Asia, had pleaded guilty to conspiracy to launder money and conspiracy to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and agreed to forfeit US$43.7 million.
Roger Ng Chong Hwa, the other charged former Goldman banker, was arrested in Malaysia at the request of US authorities and is expected to be extradited, according to John Marzulli, a spokesman for the prosecution.
The third person, the financier popularly known as Jho Low, remains at large. Malaysian authorities have issued an arrest warrant for him and have also applied for an Interpol red notice seeking assistance from the United Arab Emirates, Indonesia, India, Myanmar, China and Hong Kong.
Low, whose Malaysian passport has been revoked, has previously denied any wrongdoing.