July 21 2016
The investment fund at the center of the scandal is owned by the government of Malaysia, whose Prime Minister Najib Razak has been implicated in the scandal involving large sums of money. The 1MDB state investment fund was established in 2009 in part as an effort to build up financial infrastructure in Kuala Lumpur. But according to the lawsuits, funds from 1MDB were diverted to the co-founder of Petrosaudi, which had a joint venture with 1MDB, and then on to a high-ranking figure in the Malaysian government, known only as “Malaysian Official One.” Prosecutors accuse these individuals of misappropriating the funds for private gain.
Razak, who established the fund in an effort to promote economic investment, is the step-father of Riza Aziz, the co-founder of Red Granite Pictures, which came up with the more than $100 million (91 million euros) needed to finance the film.