"For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths." Northwoods is a ministry dedicated to refreshing Christians and challenging them to search for the truth in Christianity, politics, sociology, and science
"I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life"
Father God, thank you for the love of the truth you have given me. Please bless me with the wisdom, knowledge and discernment needed to always present the truth in an attitude of grace and love. Use this blog and Northwoods Ministries for your glory. Help us all to read and to study Your Word without preconceived notions, but rather, let scripture interpret scripture in the presence of the Holy Spirit. All praise to our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
Please note: All my writings and comments appear in bold italics in this colour
Former Prime Minister of Malaysia Najib Razak was sentenced Friday to 15 years in prison for money laundering and abuse of power in the 1MDB scandal. File Photo by Ismael Mohamad/UPI | License Photo
Dec. 26 (UPI) --Former Malaysian Prime MinisterNajib Razakwas found guilty Friday of abuse of power and money laundering in the ongoing 1 Malaysia Development Berhad scandal in the country.
A Malaysian court found Najib, 72, guilty of four counts of abuse of power and 21 counts of money laundering for transferring about $543 million from 1MDB, a state wealth fund (read slush fund), into his own bank account.
Najib was sentenced to 15 years in prison in the case and was fined about $2.8 billion. He wasalready serving jail timefor another conviction in the scandal. If he fails to pay the fine, he faces more jail time under Malaysian law.
Judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah said he "considered the public interest element and the principle of deterrence, the length of his public service and other mitigating factors," The New York Times reported.
Najib was convicted of abuse of power, money laundering and breach of trust in 2020 for misappropriation of $9.9 million in 1MDB. He was sentenced to 12 years in prison for that case, but his sentence was later cut in half.
Investigators said they believe about $4.5 billion from the fund was transferred into private accounts. He has faced five criminal trials over the scandal.
Najib's lawyer said the money was sent to him from the Saudi royal family. But the judge rejected that argument, saying the donation letters were forged.
"The accused is no country bumpkin but possessed of not only an impeccable family and a political pedigree, but of superior intelligence," The Times reported Sequerah said. "Any attempt to paint the accused as an ignoramus or as hopelessly unaware of the misdeeds going around him must therefore fail miserably."
Najib has also claimed he was deceived by advisers and other officials affiliated with 1MDB, including Jho Low, a Malaysian financier alleged to be the mastermind of the scheme. Low is in hiding.
"It pains me every day to know that the 1MDB debacle happened under my watch as minister of finance and prime minister," Najib said in a letter.
"For that, I would like to apologize unreservedly to the Malaysian people."
In June 2024, the U.S. Department of Justice said it reached an agreement with Low, his family and trust entities that Low established. It included civil forfeiture of more than $100 million.
The Justice Department said that more than $1.4 billion in assets associated with the scheme had already been returned to Malaysia.
In April 2023, Pras Michel, a founding member of the U.S. hip-hop group the Fugees, was convicted of being involved in a multi-million-dollar conspiracy to influence the White House under two administrations and for working as an agent for China that was allegedly part of the scheme run by Low.
More than 2,500 people have been arrested in Bangladesh amid ongoing violence triggered by protests over employment quotas, according to an AFP tally on Tuesday. At least 174 people, including several police officers, have died in the unrest, which led to a curfew, military deployment and a nationwide internet blackout.
The number of arrests in days of violence in Bangladesh passed the 2,500 mark in an AFP tally on Tuesday, after protests over employment quotas sparked widespread unrest.
At least 174 people have died, including several police officers, according to a separate AFP count of victims reported by police and hospitals.
What began as demonstrations against politicised admission quotas for sought-after government jobs snowballed last week into some of the worst unrest of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's tenure.
A curfew was imposed and soldiers deployed across the South Asian country, and a nationwide internet blackout drastically restricted the flow of information, upending daily life for many.
On Sunday, the Supreme Court pared back the number of reserved jobs for specific groups, including the descendants of "freedom fighters" from Bangladesh's 1971 liberation war against Pakistan.
The student group leading the demonstrations suspended its protests Monday for 48 hours, with its leader saying they had not wanted reform "at the expense of so much blood".
The restrictions remained in place Tuesday after the army chief said the situation had been brought "under control".
There was a heavy military presence in Dhaka, with bunkers set up at some intersections and key roads blocked with barbed wire.
But more people were on the streets, as were hundreds of rickshaws.
"I did not drive rickshaws the first few days of curfew, But today I didn't have any choice," rickshaw driver Hanif told AFP.
"If I don't do it, my family will go hungry."
The head of Students Against Discrimination, the main group organising the protests, told AFP in his hospital room Monday that he feared for his life after being abducted and beaten, and the group said Tuesday at least four of its leaders were missing, asking authorities to "return" them by the evening.
'Killed at random'
The authorities' response to the protests has been widely criticised, with Bangladeshi Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus urging "world leaders and the United Nations to do everything within their powers to end the violence" in a statement.
The respected 83-year-old economist is credited with lifting millions out of poverty with his pioneering microfinance bank but earned the enmity of Hasina, who has accused him of "sucking blood" from the poor.
"Young people are being killed at random every day," Yunus told AFP. "Hospitals do not reveal the number of wounded and dead."
Diplomats in Dhaka also questioned the government's actions, with US Ambassador Peter Haas telling the foreign minister he had shown a one-sided video at a briefing to diplomats.
More than 1,200 people detained over the course of the violence – nearly half the 2,580 total – were held in Dhaka and its rural and industrial areas, according to police officials who spoke to AFP.
Almost 600 were arrested in Chittagong and its rural areas, with hundreds more detentions tallied in multiple districts across the country.
'Sheikh Hasina never flees'
With around 18 million young people in Bangladesh out of work, according to government figures, the June reintroduction of the quota scheme – halted since 2018 – deeply upset graduates facing an acute jobs crisis.
With protests mounting across the country, the Supreme Court on Sunday curtailed the number of reserved jobs from 56 percent of all positions to seven percent, mostly for the children and grandchildren of "freedom fighters" from the 1971 war.
While 93 percent of jobs will be awarded on merit, the decision fell short of protesters' demands to scrap the "freedom fighter" category altogether.
Late Monday, Hasina's spokesman told AFP the prime minister had approved a government order putting the Supreme Court's judgement into effect.
Critics say the quota is used to stack public jobs with loyalists to Hasina's ruling Awami League.
Hasina, 76, has ruled the country since 2009 and won her fourth consecutive election in January after a vote without genuine opposition.
Her government is also accused by rights groups of misusing state institutions to entrench its hold on power and stamp out dissent, including by the extrajudicial killing of opposition activists.
(AFP)
U.S. recovers cash, artwork in $85M
1MDB civil forfeiture
By Mike Heuer
The superyacht Equanimity arrives at Port Klang, Selangor, Malaysia, on Aug. 7, 2018, and is among many assets seized from suspected 1MDB embezzler Low Taek Jho in recent years. Photo by Ahmad Yusni/EPA-EFE
July 23 (UPI) --The Department of Justice recovered nearly $85 million in cash and artwork allegedly paid for with money embezzled from 1Malaysia Development Berhad.
The works of art and jewelry were allegedly possessed by Low Taek Jho, who also goes by Jho Low, and his co-conspirators after embezzling billions from 1MDB, which is Malaysia's sovereign investment fund.
Low and his co-conspirators are accused of embezzling more than $4.5 billion from 1MDB from 2009 through 2015.
1MDB former general counsel "Jasmine" Loo Ai Swan agreed to help the Department of Justice recover artwork by Picasso and money from a Swiss bank account.
The Department of Justice also obtained civil forfeiture orders on assets allegedly obtained by Low using embezzled funds, including the aforementioned diamond jewelry and works of art.
Instead of using 1MDB funds for their intended purpose of promoting economic development in Malaysia through direct foreign investment and global partnerships, the Department of Justice says Low and Loo conspired to embezzle the money.
Instead of improving the well-being of Malaysian people, the Department of Justice alleged the pair and others conspired to engage in international bribery and money laundering to promote their own well-being at the expense of the Malaysian people.
Loo agreed to surrender a Picasso work of art and $1.8 million in cash. The agreement still leaves Loo liable for potential criminal charges.
Low also agreed to forfeit the many works of art he allegedly bought using embezzled funds from 1MDB.
The combined assets forfeited by Loo and Low amount to about $85 million.
The asset forfeiture was done through the U.S. District Court for Central California.
The Department of Justice previously secured a combined total of about $1.4 billion in assets and returned them to Malaysia.
The assets were associated with the international embezzlement, money laundering and bribery scheme in which Loo, Low and others allegedly participated.
Low also is charged with conspiracy to launder billions embezzled from 1MDB and violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act by allegedly bribing Malaysian and Emirati officials.
Now the question is, how much and to whom? And were the recipient(s) aware of it? Of course they were, or what would be the point?
The additional criminal charges against Low are filed in the U.S. District Court of Eastern New York.
The Department of Justice said Wednesday it reached an agreement with Low Taek Jho for the largest-ever $100 (mn) civil forfeiture in a multi-billion dollar 1MDB Malaysia embezzlement and money laundering scheme. Prime Minister of Malaysia Mohammed Najib Razak (pictured, 2013) went to prison for his part in the scheme in August 2022. Low still faces criminal charges in New York. File Photo by Ismael Mohamad/UPI | License Photo
June 26 (UPI) --The Department of Justice said Wednesday an agreement was reached in the alleged embezzlement of $4.5 billion from Malaysia's sovereign investment fund known as 1 Malaysia Development Berhad, or 1MDB.
The agreement is with Low Taek Jho, also known as Jho Low, members of his family and trust entities Low established. It includes a civil forfeiture of more than $100 million.
The DOJ said that, prior to this agreement, more than $1.4 billion in assets associated with the scheme was returned to Malaysia.
"The Low Parties have also agreed to cooperate in the transfer to Malaysia of certain other assets located in Hong Kong, Switzerland, and Singapore that are linked to 1MDB funds," the DOJ said in a statement. "Under the agreement, the department will coordinate with foreign partners to facilitate the liquidation and return of these assets to Malaysia."
The DOJ, citing the civil forfeiture complaints, said, "From 2009 through 2015, more than $4.5 billion in funds belonging to 1MDB were allegedly misappropriated by high-level officials of 1MDB and their associates, including Low, through a criminal conspiracy involving international money laundering and bribery."
Civil forfeiture actions under the agreement include a Paris luxury apartment, as well as art in Switzerland by Andy Warhol and Claude Monet, which Low bought for roughly $35 million.
Approximately $67 million in real property and bank accounts cash in Hong Kong, Switzerland and Singapore is also being forfeited.
In addition to the civil forfeiture, DOJ said Low faces criminal charges for "allegedly conspiring to launder billions of dollars embezzled from 1MDB and for conspiring to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act by allegedly paying bribes to various Malaysian and Emirati officials, and in the District of Columbia for allegedly conspiring to make and conceal foreign and conduit campaign contributions during the United States presidential election in 2012."
So, to which Presidential candidate did these concealed contributions go? Hmmmm?
Ex-Malaysia Prime Minister Najib Razakwent to prison in August 2022 after a top court affirmed his sentence for stealing billions from the 1MDB fund. He set up the fund after taking office in 2009.
Goldman Sachs and its Malaysian subsidiary agreed to pay $2.9 billion in October 2020 after admitting to bribery as part of the 1MDB scandal.
In April 2023, U.S. hip-hop group the Fugees founding member Pras Michel was convicted of being involved in a multi-million-dollar conspiracy aimed at influencing the White House under two administrations and for working as an agent for China that was allegedly part of the huge scheme run by Low.
Goldman Sachs (Asia) has been fined $350 million by Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) for its role in a multibillion-dollar scandal that involved top Malaysian officials, including its former prime minister.
The fine is the highest ever imposed by the Hong Kong markets’ watchdog. The SFC said on Thursday that the regional unit of the US investment bank was fined due to “serious lapses and deficiencies in its management supervisory, risk, compliance and anti-money-laundering controls that contributed to the misappropriation of $2.6 billion” from three bond offerings in 2012 and 2013 that raised $6.5 billion for 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB).
The SFC added that Goldman Sachs (Asia) in Hong Kong had significant involvement in the origination, approval, execution and sales process of the three 1MDB bond offerings.
According to the commission, the Wall Street bank received $581.5 million in fees from 1MDB, inclusive of $567 million in commission from the three bond sales. Its Hong Kong unit alone collected $210 million, or 37 percent of the total fees from the debt sales, the largest chunk among various Goldman Sachs entities.
“This enforcement action is the result of a rigorous, independent investigation conducted by the SFC into whether Goldman Sachs (Asia)’s involvement with 1MDB in 2012 and 2013 contravened the standards expected of firms under Hong Kong regulations,” said Ashley Alder, the SFC’s chief executive.
“The penalty in this case – assessed solely in accordance with Hong Kong’s own fining framework – reflects our findings that Goldman Sachs (Asia) failed to deal properly with numerous suspicious circumstances surrounding the 1MDB bond offerings. These failures led to multiple, serious breaches of the rules which set out the high standards of behavior expected of all firms supervised by the SFC,” Alder added.
Last year, the SFC banned former Goldman Sachs (Asia) partner Tim Leissner from working as a securities and financial adviser in the city for life, in relation to the 1MDB corruption scandal. Leissner pleaded guilty in August 2018 to criminal charges brought against him by the US Department of Justice for money laundering and corruption.
1MDB was set up in 2009 by Najib Razak, then-prime minister of Malaysia, who was sentenced to 12 years in jail after being convicted on all charges related to the fund.Goldman Sachs was the main banker for the fund and helped it to raise $6.5 billion through bond sales. However, much of the funds were misappropriated during the process by government officials and two Goldman bankers, while the bank was accused of covering up the looting of the nation’s state fund.
Superyacht Equanimity - purchased with funds pilfered from 1MDB
The money siphoned off from state coffers was used to buy everything from artwork and jewelry to real estate and a superyacht. Some of the cash helped to finance the movie, ‘The Wolf of Wall Street,’ which earned actor Leonardo DiCaprio a Golden Globe for his performance as a stock-market scammer.
In September, Malaysia dropped criminal charges against Goldman Sachs after the bank agreed to pay $4 billion in compensation. However, that did not prevent the Wall Street bank from facing prosecution linked to the 1MDB saga in other countries.
Search this blog for 1MDB for more background on this story.
Malaysia has extended pressure on Wall Street titan Goldman Sachs, filing criminal charges against 17 current and former directors of the bank’s subsidiaries over alleged involvement in the multi-billion-dollar 1MDB scandal.
Goldman Sachs has been under scrutiny for its role in helping to arrange $6.5 billion through bond offerings for Malaysian state fund, the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB).The fund is at the center of one of the biggest financial scandals of all time, and is now being investigated for money laundering.
In the filings issued on Friday, Malaysian Attorney General Tommy Thomas said the executives mentioned in the document should be held responsible for the US bank’s role in the scheme. The prosecution wants to seek custodial sentences and criminal fines for the accused, “given the severity of the scheme to defraud and fraudulent misappropriation of billions in bond proceeds, the lengthy period over which the offenses were planned and executed.”
Each charge carries a maximum jail term of 10 years and a penalty of at least 1 million ringgit ($239,000), according to Reuters.
The list includes 17 people who were in charge of three Goldman Sachs subsidiaries between May 2012 and March 2013, during which the alleged fraud took place, according to the attorney general. Richard Gnodde, who leads the bank’s international business in London, as well as Canadian business executive Michael Evans, a former Goldman Sachs Asia chief who is currently the president of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba, were among those charged on Friday. British banker Michael Sherwood, former vice chairman of the Wall Street firm, is also on the list.
The latest case adds to last year’s accusations, when Malaysian authorities filed charges against three Goldman Sachs units and two ex-employees. Kuala Lumpur is seeking $7.5 billion in compensation from the bank.
The US investment bank has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing, claiming it fell victim to the previous corrupt Malaysian government. Commenting on the latest accusations, Goldman Sachs said the charges were misdirected and promised to “vigorously” contest them.
Former Malaysia PM pleads 'not guilty' in 1MDB corruption trial
By Clyde Hughes
Former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak (L) leaves the Kuala Lumpur High Court, Malaysia Wednesday. Photo by Fazry Ismail/EPA-EFE
(UPI) -- Former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak pleaded not guilty Wednesday to charges of corruption at his trial in Kuala Lumpur.
Prosecutors have charged Razak with criminal breach of trust, abuse of power and money laundering in connection with $14 million from SRC International, a former unit of the state-run 1Malaysia Development Berhad, or 1MDB.
Razak answered the charges in an appearance Wednesday.
Authorities in Malaysia and the United States believe $731 million of the money was funneled to Razak's private bank accounts.The amount is a small part of what prosecutors actually think Razak, 65, actually received. The former leader has denied wrongdoing throughout his prosecution, saying the charges are politically motivated.
"Evidence will establish that the personal checks were issued for, among others, payment for renovation works carried out at [Razak's] residence at Jalan Langgak Duta and residence in Pekan, Pahang and ... component political parties," Malaysian Attorney General Tommy Thomas said in court Wednesday.
Thomas argued that Razak wielded "near-absolute power" during his time as prime minister, between 2009 and 2018, and the former leader believed he was above the law.
Malaysian financier Jho Low, who's believed to be the mastermind behind the 1MDB case, faces charges in Malaysia and the United States. He is believed to be living in China, beyond the reach of U.S. and Malaysian authorities.
Malaysians voted Razak out of office last year in favor of rival Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
Authorities in Malaysia have also filed criminal charges against Goldman Sachs in the case, arguing it helped 1MDB raise more than $6 billion from investors through what they say were false and misleading statements. The U.S. investment firm has worked to distance itself from the case and has apologized for the role of a former partner who pleaded guilty to charges related to the scandal.
Superyacht linked to Malaysia’s state fund looting scandal
sold for $126 million
A superyacht purchased with money pilfered from the Malaysian state fund 1MDB has been sold to casino operator Genting Malaysia Berhad.
The 91.5-meter luxury yacht Equanimity was bought on Wednesday, according to Malaysia’s Attorney General Tommy Thomas as cited by the Star newspaper.
The price offered by Genting was the best it had received since the yacht was put up for sale last year, he said. Genting will pay for it by end of the month.
“This judicial sale at USD$126 million (RM514.14 million), is historic, by any measure,” said Thomas. The deal “records a high-water mark for our judicial system in ensuring that market value is secured for a vessel sold through the processes of Court, without any discount.”
He added that “It is even more commendable that this is achieved in a very sophisticated high-end superyacht sale, where the pool of buyers is extremely small.”
Equanimity was among assets allegedly bought by Malaysia’s fugitive financier Low Taek Jho and his associates with money stolen from the fund. It was allegedly purchased for $250 million and was outfitted with a helipad, swimming pool, movie theatre, spa and sauna.
The US has filed forfeiture lawsuits against $1.7 billion of assets that were allegedly acquired with money embezzled from 1MDB, including a $1.29 million heart-shaped diamond and a $3.8 million diamond pendant that Low gave to Australian model Miranda Kerr. A $3.2 million Picasso painting was gifted by Low to actor Leonardo DiCaprio. Both celebrities have since handed the gifts over to US authorities.
Low, who has repeatedly maintained his innocence, faces charges including money laundering in Malaysia. He has been charged in absentia amid suspicions that he is hiding out in China.
The scandal with the Malaysian state fund has been making headlines for years and is being investigated in at least six countries. It involves high-ranking Malaysian officials including former Prime Minister Najib Razak who have been accused of helping to loot billions from the fund.
Malaysia also wants $7.5 billion in reparations from Wall Street investment bank Goldman Sachs, which it accuses of covering up the looting of the nation’s state fund. Malaysia filed criminal charges against the US bank and two of its key bankers, accusing them of misappropriating money, bribing officials and giving false statements when helping to arrange bond sales for 1MDB. The bank has denied the allegations, claiming it fell victim of the previous corrupt Malaysian government.
