MALAYSIA
The Cost of Pink Diamonds
Malaysian authorities charged former Prime Minister Najib Razak with three counts of money laundering on Wednesday in a case related to the notorious 1Malaysia Development Berhad embezzlement scandal.
The charges concern three electronic transfers worth a total of $10 million from a onetime unit of the investment fund that prosecutors alleged were deposited into Najib’s personal accounts, the New York Times reported.
US prosecutors claim that at least $4.5 billion from the fund, known as 1MDB, was laundered through American financial institutions and redirected to Najib, his family and associates – who used it to buy pink diamonds, priceless works of art and a $250 million yacht that was returned to Malaysia from Indonesia on Wednesday.
Najib, whose loss in the May elections stemmed largely from the scandal, pleaded not guilty to the charges, each of which carries a jail sentence of up to 15 years, plus fines of at least $1.2 million. Previously, he pleaded not guilty to three counts of criminal breach of trust and one count of corruption in connection with the 1MDB scandal.
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