Goldman Sachs in London (Photo: AFP/VNA)Kuala Lumpur (VNA) – The Magistrate’s Court of Malaysia on June 24fixed September 30 for the criminal case against US investment bank GoldmanSachs’s issuance of bonds involving 6.5 billion USD related to the 1 MalaysiaDevelopment Berhad (MDB) investment fund.
The decision was made after defence lawyers asked for more time to receiveinstructions from their clients abroad.
Malaysian prosecutors had previously issued summonses to three Goldman Sachsunits in the UK, Hong Kong and Singapore, requiring them to respond to the criminalcharges filed against them.
Lawyer Hisyam Teh Poh Teik, who represented Goldman Sachs, said that thedefence team received three summonses while another was incomplete for the fourcharges against Goldman Sachs units.
Under such circumstances, the Goldman Sachs’ lawyers asked for three months sothat they will have enough time to take instructions from their clients.
Last December, Malaysian prosecutors had filed charges against the threeGoldman Sachs units for misleading investors by making untrue statements andomitting key facts in relation to bond issues that the bank had arrange for 1MDB.
The US Department of Justice estimates 4.5 billion USD wasmisappropriated from 1MDB between 2009 and 2014, including some of the fundsthat Goldman Sachs helped raise.
Malaysia has said it was seeking up to 7.5 billion USD in reparations fromGoldman over its dealings with 1MDB, set up in 2009 by then PM Najib Razak.Najib, who lost a general election last year, is facing 42 criminal chargesrelated to losses at 1MDB and other state entities.
Malaysia set up a special task force to investigate the 1MDB scandal with thesupport of the US, Switzerland, Singapore, Canada and several othercountries.-VNA
VNA
