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Jho Low mulled buying Barbados bank to stow money

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Wall Street Journal says leaked email describes how Low wanted to purchase bank in the Caribbean Island as a ‘parking spot’ for his own funds as well as friends and family.

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PETALING JAYA: Malaysian tycoon Low Taek Jho or Jho Low, who has been implicated by the US Department of Justice (DoJ) in the alleged misappropriation of funds linked to 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB), had reportedly considered a move to buy a bank in Barbados to safely stow away money there.

The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday that this was revealed in leaked emails connected to Yousef Al Otaiba, the United Arab Emirates’ (UAE) ambassador to the US who is said to have had dealings with Low, and his business partner Shaher Awartani.

It said Low, 35, was cited in one email as saying he wanted the bank to be acquired with a company owned by Al Otaiba and Awartani as the official buyer, to serve as a “parking spot” for his funds as well as those of his friends and family.

In another email from Awartani, Low was described as having stated during a meeting in December 2013 that both Al Otaiba and Awartani would be paid an undisclosed amount before the end of that year if a deal involving the Helmsley building, also known as Park Lane Hotel, in New York was closed that very day, the report said

The report said Low had taken a 55% stake in the 46-story building and sold part of the stake to Abu Dhabi sovereign-wealth fund Mubadala Development.

On May 5, 2015, Low was again described in an email addressed to Al Otaiba by a Dubai-based financial executive working at a company controlled by Al Otaiba and Awartani, as having instructed the men to close their accounts at BSI Bank, a private Swiss company, the report said.

“He has moved the major assets and accounts away from BSI, with some remaining which will be closed/transferred soon,” the executive was quoted as saying of Low.

The executive also wrote that Low discussed buying a bank in Barbados for him to stow money, with a Dubai investment company controlled by Otaiba and Awartani as the official buyer, the report said.

According to the executive, Low “felt compelled to buy a bank as a parking spot for his funds, as well as friends & family,” it added.

The WSJ also quoted an unnamed representative of Low as denying wrongdoing by the Penang-born businessman in the 1MDB affair.

“Mr Low is confident that when the appropriate and impartial legal tribunals are presented with the actual facts, it will be clear that this case is deeply flawed and an example of vast overreach by certain authorities,” the representative was quoted as having said on Friday.

“This shows a reliance on improperly obtained and selectively leaked, unauthenticated information to support a politically motivated and unproven narrative. This creates a biased and inaccurate picture.”

A tweet attributed to Low was shared by WSJ reporter Bradley Hope last month, in which the tycoon reportedly slammed the DoJ, saying it had not proven that any improprieties had occurred.

“The US Department of Justice’s latest move continues its inappropriate efforts to seize assets despite not having proven that any improprieties have occurred,” the tweet read.

“This week’s activity from the DoJ is a further example of global overreach in pursuit of a deeply flawed case.

“We look forward to the court being presented with the actual facts which demonstrate that the DoJ’s case is completely without foundation,” it added.

In its civil forfeiture suit filed in July last year, the DoJ sought to recover more than US$1 billion (RM4.28 billion) in assets allegedly linked to 1MDB funds.

The assets included, but were not limited to, the Park Lane Hotel, a luxury hotel in Beverly Hills, condominiums in New York, a private jet, expensive works of art, as well as the financing of Martin Scorsese’s movie “The Wolf of Wall Street” starring Leonardo DiCaprio.

On June 15 this year, the DoJ filed another civil suit seeking to seize US$540 million (RM2.3 billion) in assets, including art works, jewellery, a yacht worth US$165 million, and film rights to the two comedies “Dumb and Dumber To” starring Jim Carrey and “Daddy’s Home” featuring Will Ferrell, all paid for with funds allegedly embezzled from 1MDB.

The DoJ suit also said Low had purchased a 22-carat pink diamond necklace worth US$27.3 million for the “wife of Malaysian Official No. 1”, using the same source of funds.

Tweet attributed to Jho Low slams latest DoJ action

US links US$2.2 billion deal involving Jho Low to 1MDB

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