US denies role in transfer of Jho Low’s yacht to Malaysia

Bloomberg

The US Justice Department reiterated it wasn’t involved in turning over Low Taek Jho’s $250 million super yacht to Malaysia from Indonesia as the fugitive financier vowed not to submit to any jurisdiction where his guilt had been predetermined.
Federal prosecutors said their only part in the yacht’s handover was to advise the crew members of the “Equanimity” to obey the instructions of the Indonesian government, which had both physical and legal custody of the 300-foot boat, according to a court filing in Los Angeles.
Lawyers representing the companies that hold title to Low’s yacht last week asked a federal judge to order the Justice Department to provide a “thorough clarification” on whether US agencies or officials knew in advance or were involved in transferring the “Equanimity” to Malaysia. The lawyers cited a statement by the Malaysian attorney general that thanked the US for its help in seizing the yacht.
The yacht arrived at a port in the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur on August 7, after it travelled from Indonesia where it was seized in February as part of the Justice Department’s probe linked to state investment fund 1Malaysia Development Bhd. PM Mahathir Mohamad called on the yacht’s owner to prove that it wasn’t bought using money from the fund, at the centre of global probes linked to embezzlement and money laundering, while Low had said Malaysia’s move to acquire the vessel was “illegitimate.”
It’s not surprising to see the Justice Department confirm that “Malaysia’s illegal seizure of the Equanimity was without US knowledge or consent.”