There is no allegation that Najib spent any of the money but people close to him are accused of using billions of dollars to buy jewellery, art and luxury properties; pay gambling expenses; and hire musicians and celebrities to attend parties. The court papers, filed in Los Angeles, allege that money was laundered through accounts in the US. If successful the US justice department would seize assets, including property in the US, UK and Switzerland. The $1bn would only make up a proportion of the money that was allegedly diverted, which comes to more than $3.5bn (£2.6bn).
Najib’s stepson, Riza Aziz, is named in the court papers, which were filed in Los Angeles. Mr Riza produced the Leonardo DiCaprio film The Wolf of Wall Street. A Malaysian financier and two Abu Dhabi government officials are also among those named.
A spokesperson for the prime minister said: “The Malaysian Government will fully co-operate with any lawful investigation of Malaysian companies or citizens in accordance with international protocols. As the prime minister has always maintained, if any wrongdoing is proven, the law will be enforced without exception.”
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