The United States justice department says it has obtained an order forfeiting a luxury New York apartment purchased with funds misappropriated from 1MDB, a Malaysian Sovereign Wealth Fund, along with certain rental income. 

The forfeiture resolved a civil forfeiture case filed in the U.S. district court for the Central District of California seeking the recovery of over $6 million in assets associated with an international conspiracy to launder funds misappropriated from 1MDB. 

As alleged in civil forfeiture complaints filed in this case, billions of dollars in funds belonging to 1MDB were misappropriated from 2009 through 2015 by high-level officials of 1MDB and their associates, and Low Taek Jho, also known as Jho Low, through a criminal scheme involving international money laundering and embezzlement. 

Millions of dollars in misappropriated funds were then used to purchase a luxury condominium unit in New York City for the benefit of May Ling Catherine Tan, a personal assistant to Mr Low, who also profited from the asset by retaining rental proceeds. 

Under the forfeiture order entered in this case, the condominium and rental proceeds held by Ms Tan will be forfeited to the U.S. government.    

1MDB was created by the Malaysian government to promote economic development through global partnerships and foreign direct investment. Its funds were intended to improve the well-being of the Malaysian people. 

Instead, funds held by 1MDB and proceeds of bonds issued for and on behalf of 1MDB were misappropriated and spent by Mr Low and his co-conspirators on a wide variety of extravagant items, including luxury homes and properties in Beverly Hills, California, New York, and London; a 300-foot superyacht; and fine art by Monet and Van Gogh. 

The funds were also sent into numerous business investments, including a boutique hotel in Beverly Hills, the movie production company that made ‘The Wolf of Wall Street’, the redevelopment of the Park Lane Hotel in Manhattan, and shares in EMI, the largest private music-rights holder. 

As alleged, other funds were provided to various public officials and co-conspirators.