KUALA LUMPUR - As Malaysia's top cop, Inspector General of Police Khalid Bakar, vowed to hunt down the editor of whistle-blower website Sarawak Report to the four corners of the earth, latest news has emerged that Jho Low - the chubby-cheeked crony of Prime Minister Najib Razak and his family - has 'relocated to Taiwan.
"It is ironic that the Malaysian authorities have gone quiet on Jho Low given the mountain of documents and email trails that show his direct hand in 1MDB transactions, side by side with Najib, who is the ultimate signing authority, for all the alleged shady mega-billion deals," a political watcher told Malaysia Chronicle.
"The police should have immediately put Jho Low on Interpol watch. The IGP must explain why he hasn't done so because if anyone has committed a crime against Malaysia, one of the first plunderers and pillagers to be hauled up must surely be Jho Low."
"Instead, all Khalid Bakar does is go around boasting about not resting until he brings Clare Brown (the Sarawak Report editor) to face trial in Malaysia for 'lies' against Najib. How can people have faith in him as the IGP, when he plays politics and tries to keep the heat off Najib when he should be going after alleged criminals like Jho Low."
So is Jho Low wanted by the Malaysian authorities including Bank Negara and the Malaysian Anti Corruption Commission?
Calls are growing for the different government enforcement agencies to continue with the high-level probe against Najib, his 'boy wonder' Jho Low, and their 1MDB financial fund scam.
All eyes are on whether the MACC and Bank Negara will resist the 'devious attempts' by Najib's supporters to halt or interfere with their findings on 1MDB, which has been reported to have racked up US$ 42 billion in debt.
According to th Sarawaek Report, it has now reliably established that the global financier, self-styled philanthropist and international party lover, Malaysia’s Taek Jho Low, has relocated to Taiwan.
The news is likely to provoke considerable dismay amongst the Crystal-drinking Las Vegas nightclub set and trendy Hollywood pals like Leonardo di Caprio.
However, those in the know confirm he has become rooted in the island state and appears to have jettisoned his previous Hong Kong base and hyper-active travel schedules for several weeks.
We also understand that Mr Low’s motivation for curtailing his formerly febrile jet-setting habits and sticking unflinchingly to terra firma these days in Taipei, owes to the republic’s reputation as an extradition blackspot.
US Citizen – two passports!
Paying for the party – Jho Low
In particular, Taiwan is untouched by the jurisdiction of the United States, with which it has not had diplomatic relations since 1979.
This is significant, because Sarawak Report can now definitively reveal that Jho Low has not just one American passport, but two.
The numbers of these passports are A10690483 and A19877008. Neither of course are legal for a Malaysian to possess, owing to the country’s strict citizen laws.
Under US law Jho Low can possess two passports. However, as he is now an American citizen he is also subject to American laws, particularly with respect to money laundering proceeds of corruption through the US financial system.
Wanted – sort of….
Party image makeover – Jho Low has been splashing out on ‘philanthropy’ e.g. US$50million to US cancer research.. but did the money come from Malaysia’s development fund?
Several bodies of investigators from different jurisdictions have recently started to indicate that they would be extremely pleased to talk with Mr Low, as they believe he could help them with their enquiries with respect to a number of lines of investigation into the missing millions from Malaysia’s development fund 1MDB.
Jho Low was the link man for the initial 1MDB PetroSaudi joint venture, for example, which was something he initially sought to adamantly deny.
He was also the link man with Abu Dhabi fund Aabar with which he conducted a number of private deals at the same time that Aabar was doing very well indeed out of its entirely passive role as an advertised partner of 1MDB on several of its big investments.
The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission has signalled its interest in speaking to Mr Low on these matters, as has the Parliamentary Accounts Committee (presently suspended owing to the actions of the Prime Minister).
Safe in Malaysia?
It is believed that discreet enquiries are now also being made by certain US regulators into such matters, who might also be seeking his whereabouts.
On the other hand, of course, Malaysia’s Inspector General of Police has yet to do anything so uncouth as to rush into court and execute an arrest warrant for Mr Low, let alone attempt to place him on Interpol’s Red Alert list for people wanted for enormous crimes, such as the stealing of billions of dollars of public money.
Malaysia’s IGP has restricted such actions merely to outfits like Sarawak Report, who provided the initial details into the missing money and sparked all these pesky investigations, which he and Najib are now doing their best to close down.
In fact, after the recent clamp downs by Najib and the new concept being promoted by his new ministers that the PM and his friends should be considered to be above the law, might not Malaysia turn out to be Jho Low’s safest haven?
Apparently not, in Jho Low’s estimation.
It is understood that the Penang born multi-billionaire feels nervous that the rest of the population might feel less charitable towards him as the evidence of their missing billions escalates, taxes rise and the ringgit plummets. He seems settled in Taipei.
Off-shore accounts
Of particular concern to Jho Low will be the fate of his off-shore money and foreign accounts.
Brushstroke by Roy Lichtenstein…. worth around a million bucks
His accounts at the BSI Bank in Singapore have already been frozen. Sarawak Report now understands that a network of accounts in the Island of Guernsey (British Channel Islands) are also now suspended, pending investigation.
The relevant authorities have reported that they believe that the contents of these accounts may represent the proceeds of corruption.
It will plainly be extremely sad and dull for the jet-setting Mr Low to have to clip his wings like this and remain doggedly in Taiwan for the coming future. However, despite such potential financial woes, he appears to have continued spending for his friends and foundations over the past months of scrutiny.
At San Tropez last month his money still flowed sufficiently from afar to supply a fabulously expensive Lichtenstein sculpture for a fancy eco-charity auction run by his fellow philanthropist cum hard party buddy Leonardo Di Caprio.
“Leonardo Dicaprio’s Foundation Gala raised USD40mil that will go towards protecting biodiversity, ocean and forest conservation and mitigating climate change” explained the publicity (too bad about the Borneo Jungle).
Low has also been pouring money into the UN, which has stood by its right to accept millions from this generous funder of its programmes for training journalists:
” The recently announced partnership with the Jynwel Foundation will help the UN Foundation contribute to what has been called “the biggest communications challenge and opportunity of our generation” – the urgent need to create an environment that will help the world achieve success on the most ambitious anti-poverty agenda in history. The new “global goals” – often referred to as the Sustainable Development Goals — will be the most comprehensive plan in history to fight poverty and create prosperity while protecting the planet. With the support of the Jynwel Foundation and other partners, the UN Foundation will be able to encourage a global discussion around the goals through increased level of media reporting, capacity building and training for journalists” [UN Foundation Spokesman statement to Sarawak Report]
It is ironic that the journalists whom Jho Low’s money will help to train would get short shrift in his native Malaysia, should they dare to tackle such matters as corruption in high places.
It is also of growing concern that this money for “tackling poverty” via the UN’s media programme is currently being investigated in relation to a massive plunder from Malaysia’s own development fund.
We have tried warning the UN and indeed other recipients of Jho Low’s largesse, but they have not been listening have they! - MAILBAG
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