Najib and Sheikh on Jho Low's 'bribe list', Leissner recalls

 

Former Goldman Sachs banker Tim Leissner testified in court that he saw Jho Low draw up a list of Malaysian and United Arab Emirates (UAE) targets they had to bribe.

Leissner said he met Low in the Mayfair section of London in 2012 over a deal for Goldman Sachs to raise US$1.75 billion for 1MDB, which would require an external guarantor.

During the meeting, Low (above) allegedly drew boxes on a piece of paper. On one side was a list of Malaysian officials and on the other, a list of UAE officials, according to Leissner.

"(Low said payments) had to be the same and be perceived to be the same.

"In my mind, that meant both sides had to get US$100 million... I can't say I was surprised," said Leissner, according to Bloomberg.

According to the Bloomberg report, Leissner testified that the list included then prime minister Najib Abdul Razak and current UAE deputy prime minister Sheikh Mansour Zayed Al Nahyan.

The UAE government did not respond to Bloomberg's request for comments. Malaysiakini is seeking comments from Najib's office.

Leissner told the court that Low "said the sheikh would not get out of bed for less than US$100 million."

Following the meeting, according to Leissner, he and his then subordinate Roger Ng agreed not to mention the bribes to anyone outside the meeting.

Former Goldman Sachs banker Tim Leissner

"Bribes had to be paid to make it happen," he said, "but we always kept it to the two of us."

There is no indication in the Bloomberg report that Leissner confirmed the bribes were paid.

Leissner is the prosecution's star witness in the trial against Ng, a Malaysian national, who was charged with violating US anti-bribery laws and money laundering.

In 2020, Leissner pleaded guilty to similar charges and was forced to forfeit US$44 million.

The US$1.75 billion bond was issued on Oct 19, 2012 for 1MDB to acquire power plant assets. Like other bonds raised by 1MDB, the proceeds are believed to have been pilfered. - Mkini