Concerning the latest allegations, Swiss authorities are scrutinising 1MDB bonds that were sold to UAE sovereign funds, officially to finance electric power plant projects in Malaysia.
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IPIC has close business links to Malaysia’s scandal-hit state fund 1MDB, which is at the centre of corruption and money-laundering investigations across multiple jurisdictions.
OAG said it has expended its criminal investigation into 1MDB to include the two former Emirati officials in charge of Abu Dhabi sovereign funds.
The Swiss Attorney-General’s Office has “elements in hand” to suspect the payments made by 1MDB benefited a firm related to motion picture industry.
1MDB had also made payments of US$855 million, US$933 million and US$295 million as security deposits and other guarantees for the bond to Aabar BVI, said the report.
A spokeswoman for Genting Bhd., which sold power assets to 1MDB, did not have any immediate comment, nor did a spokesman for the Abu Dhabi fund, International Petroleum Investment Co.
“In response to press queries, the AGC confirms that it has received a request for mutual legal assistance in criminal matters from the Office of the Attorney General Switzerland (OAGS) for information and documents on certain fund flows flowing from 1Malaysia Development Berhad and entities related to it”, said the AGC in a statement.
Lauber’s office said it was seeking help from Luxembourg and Singapore.
IPIC, which is owned by the Abu Dhabi government, and IPIC’s unit Aabar Investment PJS (Aabar) had yesterday issued a joint statement denying ownership of Aabar Investment PJS Ltd (Aabar BVI).
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Pua said it was clear that there were parties in 1MDB who had acted in cahoots with IPIC’s former top officials to “scam Malaysians of billions of dollar”. Prosecutors in Luxembourg said March 31 they started an investigation of 1MDB after finding “concrete clues” of embezzlement from companies owned by the fund via accounts in Singapore, Switzerland and Luxembourg.
