The jury found the 49-year-old guilty of all charges.
(Photo: Reuters)
new York Roger Ng was found guilty in the 1MDB corruption scandal on Friday. The eight-week trial brought to light a whole series of piquant details about Ng and his former boss, Tim Leissner, who was of German descent. The jury found Ng, 49, guilty of all charges, including violations of US anti-bribery and anti-money laundering laws.
According to the indictment, he is said to have stolen more than $ 35 million (around 32 million euros) himself through his role in the scandal. The multi-billion dollar 1MDB fund was set up in 2009 to boost Malaysia’s economy. Over the course of two years, Goldman earned about $600 million in fees overseeing three bonds that brought $6.5 billion to 1MDB — an unusually high fee for government-related transactions.
Ex-government officials and dubious advisers, however, are said to have embezzled most of the funds with the help of former Goldman employees. The dubious financier Jho Low is considered to be pulling the strings.
Goldman accepted a $2.9 billion fine in a settlement in October 2020. Leissner had pleaded guilty and made a deal with prosecutors. During the process, he heavily incriminated his former colleague.
Ng remains on bail and no date has been given for the sentencing. The former investment banker faces up to 30 years in prison. His lawyers had portrayed him as Leissner’s aide, a conscientious banker who was the first to warn Goldman Compliance about the activities of Malaysian financier Jho Low. However, the strategy didn’t work out.
“It’s a success not only for the rule of law,” but also for Malaysia, prosecutor Breon Peace said after the jury’s decision. “The defendant and his accomplices saw 1MBD not as a means to do good for the Malaysian people, but to enrich themselves with mountains of money siphoned from the fund.”
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