Mere weeks after banking authorities in Switzerland launched investigations on banks in th country for suspected collusion in wrongdoing by sovereign fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), Hong Kong police have now begun probing a series of bank deposits worth USD250 million (RM1.07 billion) allegedly linked to Prime Minister Najib Razak.
The Financial Times reports that the investigations in Hong Kong were initiated by a police report filed in the Chinese autonomous region by sacked UMNO division leader Khairuddin Abu Hassan.
Khairuddin’s police report alleges that the deposits were made at a branch of the Credit Suisse Bank in the city, through four companies linked to Najib: Alliance Assets International, Cityfield Enterprises, Bartingale International and Wonder Quest Investment.
In a Facebook post dated August 30, Khairuddin termed these companies “questionable”, as Najib is listed as a signatory to all of them:
Hong Kong authorities have confirmed that they have received Khairuddin’s report, and that their probe is underway.
The FT also reports that a Malaysian government spokesperson commented on the developments by dismissing the content of the Hong Kong investigations,, saying Khairuddin had lodged “false and politically motivated police reports”.
“The prime minister does not control any Credit Suisse bank accounts in Hong Kong, whether in his name or the name of the companies mentioned,” the government spokesman said in a statement.
On August 20, Swiss banking regulator FINMA launched a probe on banks in the country that were suspected of aiding and abetting malfeasance on the part of 1MDB, leading to a September 3 freeze on tens of millions of dollars’ worth of assets linked to 1MDB.
