DoJ says A-G postponed request for mutual legal aid on 1MDB
PUTRAJAYA: An application by the United States Department of Justice (DoJ) for mutual legal assistance related to 1Malaysia Development Bhd investigations was left unfulfilled by AttorneyGeneral Tan Sri Mohd Apandi Ali.
This was revealed to the 1MDB special task force in a meeting with officers from the DoJ and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) yesterday.
The task force said the DoJ had made applications to Apandi on Sept 22 last year.
However, the application was left unfulfilled and was postponed with the excuse that it would disrupt investigations by the Malaysian authorities.”
Hence, no cooperation has been given on the issue until yesterday.
This was revealed in a statement issued by the task force after the meeting at the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) headquarters here.
The FBI also revealed that an application letter dated Nov 13, 2016, was sent to Tan Sri Dzulkifli Ahmad, who was MACC chief commissioner at the time.
However, they also received no feedback from him.
Yesterday’s meeting was cochaired by former attorney-general Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail, former MACC chief commissioner Tan Sri Abu Kassim Mohamed, current MACC Chief Commissioner Datuk Seri Mohd Shukri Abdull and Special Branch director Datuk Abdul Hamid Bador.
They discussed the focus and direction of the 1MDB investigations, the application for mutual legal assistance (MLA) and the possibility of bringing back assets that were frozen in the US.
Those involved also agreed to offer full cooperation to complete the investigations into the debt-riddled state investment fund.
The parties are expected to meet from time to time to facilitate the investigations.
“The DoJ and FBI also recorded their highest gratitude to the newly-formed Malaysian government under the leadership of Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad for acting on the issue after the former administration failed to take any action related to 1MDB,” the statement read.