KUALA LUMPUR – Rahmat Lim & Partners, the law firm raided by police this morning in connection with the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), has said that there were documents that it could not surrender to police as they were subject to attorney-client privilege.
“We had, at the request of the police, previously provided them with all documents which are not subject to attorney-client privilege. However, we were prohibited by law from providing other requested documents,” it said in a statement as reported by Bloomberg tonight.
The firm also confirmed that it had acted in a limited role as Malaysian legal counsel for Goldman Sachs in the 1MDB bond issuances, supporting an international English law firm which was the lead counsel.
It maintained that it was committed to cooperating with the authorities in their investigation.
Business daily The Edge this morning reported that police were looking for documents involving three 1MDB bonds worth US$6.5 billion (RM26.9 billion) which Goldman Sachs had handled when they were issued in 2012 and 2013, noting that Rahmat Lim were then acting for Goldman Sachs.
A source told The Edge that police were there after obtaining a court order to do a search because the law firm had refused to hand over documents requested by the police.
The same source reportedly said local law firm Wong & Partners — which had acted for 1MDB in those transactions — had handed over requested documents to the police.
Last December 17, the Attorney General’s Chambers (AGC) said Goldman subsidiaries, two of the US investment bank’s former employees, as well as two former 1MDB employees have been charged in relation to three 1MDB bonds.
The AGC said the charges were based on providing allegedly false or misleading statements in the misappropriation of US$2.7 billion from the proceeds of the three bonds issued by 1MDB subsidiaries and arranged and underwritten by Goldman.
Yesterday, The Malaysian Reserve reported Goldman Sachs Group Inc as saying it had deposited all the net proceeds from three 1MDB bond transactions in 2012 and 2013 into 1MDB’s bank accounts.
“Not a cent of those funds has ever passed through any accounts controlled by Goldman Sachs, nor have any of those funds been subsequently moved or redirected under our authority,” the portal quoted an unnamed Goldman spokesman as saying in reply to its questions.
The three bond deals worth US$6.5 billion were cited by the publication as being named Project Magnolia, Project Maximus and Project Catalyse.
– https://www.malaymail.com
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