A Chinese daily has claimed that Penang-born businessperson Jho Low is likely to be currently residing in Taiwan.
According to Nanyang Siang Pau, it had “reliable information” of Low’s whereabouts, but did not specify details.
The report speculated that extraditing Low would be difficult as Malaysia and Taiwan do not have formal diplomatic relations.
Taiwan’s informal embassy in Kuala Lumpur – the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office – declined to comment when approached by the daily.
On Monday, newly minted Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad said his administration “roughly knows” of Low’s whereabouts.
Low has been sought by Malaysian authorities since 2015 in connection with the 1MDB affair.
He is known for his close ties with Riza Aziz, the stepson of former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak, who is now under police investigations.
Low has been mentioned extensively in the US Department of Justice (DOJ) court filings on the seizure of 1MDB assets.
He was accused of syphoning and laundering funds from 1MDB – a sovereign wealth fund established by the Najib administration – and spending the money on an extremely long list of luxuries.
This includes the US$250 million megayacht the Equanimity, which was seized by Indonesian authorities in March.
Despite his well-documented penchant for revelling with Hollywood A-listers and philanthropists, Low has disappeared from the public eye ever since Malaysian investigations on 1MDB took off in earnest in 2015. – Malaysiakini