LOW Taek Jho is now hiding like a mouse after he was indicted in absentia in a US court yesterday, said Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

The prime minister said that prior to the US Department of Justice action yesterday, Low, popularly known as Jho Low, was fleeing the world in his super yacht, The Equanimity.

“Not just the US wants him, we want him too,” Dr Mahathir said today.

He added that Malaysia wanted the first crack at Low before the United States DoJ gets its hands on him.

“We would like to find him first, because we have several charges against him,

“They (DoJ) would like to get Jho Low and put him on trial but he’s nowhere to be seen. We don’t know where he is,” Dr Mahathir said.

Former finance minister Daim Zainuddin said in an interview with Astro Awani yesterday that Low had contacted him to strike a deal.

The former Council of Eminent Persons chairman rejected the deal and wanted the businessman to come back here to face the music.

Low was indicted along with two ex-Goldman Sachs bankers, Tim Leissner and Roger Ng Chong Hwa, at a US court yesterday.

All were said to have conspired to launder billions of dollars embezzled from 1MDB, and to pay bribes to various Malaysian and Abu Dhabi officials.

Leissner had pleaded guilty to conspiracy to launder money and to violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and was ordered to pay US$43.7 million (RM182 million).

Ng was arrested in Kuala Lumpur yesterday after the US issued a warrant of arrest against him. He is expected to be extradited to the US soon. – November 2, 2018.