BILLIONAIRE financier Low Taek Jho has been named as a person “whose interests may be affected” by the recent seizure of luxury yacht Equanimity in Bali, reported the Asian Correspondent.

In legal documents published by the portal, Low, also known as Jho Low, was identified as one of the “persons and entities whose interests may be affected by this action”.

The other two parties are companies based in the Cayman Islands – FFP (Cayman) Ltd and Equanimity Holdings (Cayman) Ltd.

The Equanimity was seized by Indonesian authorities last Wednesday, following a request by the US Department of Justice, which is investigating the 1Malaysia Development Bhd scandal.

The super yacht is owned by Low, who is a central figure in the DoJ probe into allegations that billions of dollars had been stolen from 1MDB.

The Asian Correspondent had asked the DoJ for comments following the seizure of Low’s super yacht, but the department declined.

Instead, DoJ spokesman Nicole Navas Oxman disclosed to the portal several documents that led to the Equanimity’s confiscation, comprising “the complaint against the yacht”, and the “arrest warrant in rem”, which was issued by US district court judge Dale Fischer in Los Angeles.

The documents reveal in detail almost all of the items currently sought by the department, and also list specific instructions for the Federal Bureau of Investigation to seize them.

1MDB was set up in 2009 by Prime Minister Najib Razak, believed to be a close confidant of Low.

He has repeatedly denied allegations of corruption levelled against him, and has been cleared of any wrongdoing by the attorney-general.

The DoJ filed its first civil suit in the 1MDB probe in July 2016, to seize US$3.15 billion (RM12.3 billion) in assets that it claims were acquired with 1MDB’s stolen funds.

In August last year, the DoJ asked for a stay on its civil suits seeking the seizure of more than US$1.7 billion in assets, which it believes had been bought using 1MDB’s stolen funds, to allow the department to conduct a criminal probe into the scandal. – March 6, 2018.