It has emerged that Hollywood star Leonardo DiCaprio was grilled by the Federal Bureau of Investigation over his ties with Jho Low. Low is a Malaysian fugitive businessman and financier who is wanted by international authorities in connection with the 1Malaysia Development Berhad scandal (1MDB scandal). As per Bloomberg, which accessed FBI documents of interviews with DiCaprio that occurred in 2018, the actor admitted that he worked with Low and also had social interactions. He told a grand jury as per the report, “I was working for him … and that business also translates into being social. And so we saw each other more, and there was more interaction.”
Low is accused of a money-laundering scheme of over $4.5bn involving the Malaysian state investment fund known as 1MDB.
How were Leonardo DiCaprio and Jho Low connected?
According to the report, DiCaprio and Low became close after meeting in a nightclub in 2010. The two had discussed several business ideas, including a mega-fund for filmmaking and an eco-friendly resort in Belize. Additionally, Low had financed DiCaprio’s 2013 movie, The Wolf of Wall Street and gifted him various luxury items such as Marlon Brandon’s $600,000 Oscar statue and a $9m Jean-Michel Basquiat painting.
DiCaprio interestingly played the role of the first Director of FBI J Edgar Hoover in Clint Eastwood’s J. Edgar.
The 1MDB scandal refers to a corruption scandal involving a Malaysian government investment fund called 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB). The fund was created in 2009 by then-Prime Minister of Malaysia, Najib Razak, to promote economic development in the country.
However, over the years, billions of dollars from the fund were allegedly misappropriated by high-level officials and their associates for personal gain. The scandal involved allegations of fraud, embezzlement, money laundering, and bribery.
The scandal first came to light in 2015 when investigations by international media outlets and anti-corruption organisations revealed suspicious financial transactions involving the fund. The revelations triggered a series of investigations in Malaysia and several other countries.
The scandal led to the arrest and conviction of several high-level officials, including Najib Razak, who was found guilty of multiple charges related to the 1MDB scandal in 2020. The scandal also led to significant political and economic consequences for Malaysia, including the downfall of the ruling party and the loss of investor confidence in the country. The total amount misappropriated from the fund is estimated to be around $4.5 billion.
