CHINESE officials yesterday denied they were harbouring Low Taek Jho, who is wanted in Malaysia in connection with the 1MDB financial scandal, Reuters reported.

They dismissed the Malaysian police’s allegations that the Penang-born fugitive, aka Jho Low, had found safe harbour in Macau as the Chinese authorities “appeared insincere” about cooperating with requests for his extradition.

Malaysian Inspector-General of Police Abdul Hamid Bador yesterday said Low was in the semi-autonomous Chinese casino hub of Macau.

“He is there with all the filthy money,” Hamid told AFP in a text message.

Asked why he had chosen now to reveal Low’s location, the police chief said allegations had been made that officers were “purposely slowing down on the effort to bring him to justice”.

The Chinese embassy in Kuala Lumpur rejected the police chief’s accusations as “groundless and unacceptable”, saying police in China had investigated all possible leads but were unable to trace Low.

“The position of the Chinese government on combating crime is consistent and clear-cut,” it said in a statement.

“China does not and will never shelter foreign criminals.”

Macau authorities said in 2018 they had received a request from the Malaysian government concerning Low but gave no further details. 

Charged in absentia in Malaysia and the United States over the 1MDB scandal, Low has been accused by Najib’s lawyers of being the mastermind behind the scam and tricking the former premier.

Najib, who founded 1MDB, was on Tuesday sentenced to 12 years in jail and fined almost US$50 million (RM200 million) on corruption charges relating to the affair, which contributed to the downfall of his government in 2018.

The former leader is still to face the conclusion of a second trial that began in August last year centred on allegations he illicitly obtained more than US$500 million. – July 30, 2020.