Jho Low is believed to be hiding in China. (Bloomberg pic)

PETALING JAYA:

The government is said to be negotiating with Beijing to extradite Low Taek Jho, the fugitive financier at the centre of the 1MDB scandal.

Citing sources, co-author of “Billion Dollar Whale” Bradley Hope said such an arrangement is being “hotly debated” inside Putrajaya in the wake of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s trip to China last month.

“This would be huge, fascinating and mark the end of the main storyline of the 1MDB scandal – from its founding in 2009 to its collapse amid scandal in 2015 and all the insane partying and spending along the way until 2023,” he said in a website dedicated to tracking down the Penang-born businessman known popularly as Jho Low.

Hope said the arrangement would involve handing over Low to Malaysia, as well as “wiping the slate clean” over China’s alleged involvement in Low’s deals to cover up the 1MDB fraud.

He added that his sources told him that Low had become a “liability of the worst kind” for China after former prime minister Najib Razak lost the general election in 2018.

Hope also said his sources claimed the deal would see Malaysia receiving all the money stolen from 1MDB along with other assets linked to the sovereign wealth fund.

“This is an incredibly delicate and challenging deal to work out, and I imagine that both sides (Malaysia and China) would want to make this a positive announcement,” said Hope.

Low, who has been charged in Malaysia and the United States over allegations that he orchestrated the theft of US$4.5 billion from 1MDB, is believed to be in Macau, although Beijing has denied protecting the fugitive financier.

Low was sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment in absentia by a Kuwaiti court on money laundering charges last month.

Kuwaiti newspaper Al-Qabas reported that a sheikh, his partner and a foreigner were also handed 10-year prison sentences, while a lawyer was sentenced to seven years on money laundering charges in relation to a “Malaysian fund”.

Last September, inspector-general of police (IGP) Acryl Sani Abdullah Sani said efforts to track Low were still ongoing, and no Interpol member countries had confirmed Low’s presence within their territories.

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Putrajaya negotiating with China for Jho Low’s extradition, claims author

Co-author of “Billion Dollar Whale” Bradley Hope says the arrangement is being ‘hotly debated’ in the government following the prime minister’s trip to China.