The U.S. Justice Department has secured a forfeiture order for a luxury apartment in New York City, along with its rental income, all tied to the massive 1MDB international money-laundering scandal.
The move wraps up a civil forfeiture case in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. Federal prosecutors aimed to claw back more than $6 million in assets linked to a global conspiracy to launder money stolen from 1MDB, Malaysia’s state-owned investment fund.
According to court documents, high-level officials and their associates raked in billions of dollars from 1MDB between 2009 and 2015. The sovereign wealth fund was originally set up by the Malaysian government to boost local economic development and improve the well-being of its citizens. Instead, a sprawling network of co-conspirators, led by financier Low Taek Jho—better known as Jho Low—embezzled the funds.
Investigators say millions of those stolen dollars went toward buying a high-end New York condominium for May Ling Catherine Tan, who served as a personal assistant to Low. Tan also pocketed the rental income generated by the property. Under the new court order, both the real estate and the rental cash will turn over to the U.S. government.
The New York apartment represents just a small piece of a much larger, incredibly lavish spending spree. Federal prosecutors allege that Low and his network burned through the state fund on luxury properties in Beverly Hills, New York, and London, a 300-foot superyacht, and masterpieces by Monet and Van Gogh.
Stolen money was also pumped into major business investments. The funds helped bankroll a Beverly Hills boutique hotel, the redevelopment of Manhattan’s Park Lane Hotel, shares in music publisher EMI, and even the Hollywood production company behind the movie “The Wolf of Wall Street.” Other pieces of the cash pool went directly to foreign public officials.
The civil case is being handled by Trial Attorney Barbara Levy of the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering, Narcotics and Forfeiture Section (MNF), with support from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Central California, the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs, and the U.S. Marshals. The FBI’s International Corruption Squad in New York headed up the investigation.
Tracking the global trail required a massive international team. The Justice Department received help from law enforcement and judicial authorities in Malaysia, the United Kingdom, Singapore, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Indonesia, Latvia, France, Guernsey, and the British Virgin Islands.
Federal authorities are asking anyone with information regarding foreign corruption proceeds moving through the U.S. financial system to contact federal law enforcement or submit an email to tips.fbi.gov.
READ: U.S. Forces Intercept Attack Drones, Launch Air Strikes On Ground Station Inside Iran
Please make a small donation to the Tampa Free Press to help sustain independent journalism. Your contribution enables us to continue delivering high-quality, local, and national news coverage.
Sign up: Subscribe to our free newsletter for a curated selection of top stories delivered straight to your inbox
