17 more charged in Goldman case

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — Malaysia filed criminal charges on Friday against 17 more current and former directors at three Goldman Sachs subsidiaries for their roles in the alleged multibillion-dollar ransacking of state investment fund 1MDB.

Malaysian and U.S. prosecutors allege that bond sales organized by Goldman Sachs for 1MDB provided one of the means for associates of former Malaysian leader Najib Razak to steal billions over several years from a fund that was ostensibly set up to accelerate Malaysia’s economic development.

The government in December filed criminal charges against Goldman Sachs and two former executives, accusing them of breaches of securities laws including making false, misleading statements to investors.

Atty. Gen. Tommy Thomas said the 17 people in the most recent filings were charged under the Malaysian Capital Markets and Services Act with conniving to commit the massive fraud.

They include Richard John Gnodde, chief executive of Goldman Sachs International, and John Michael Evans, a former partner at the bank and now president of Chinese conglomerate Alibaba Group Holdings Ltd.

The 17 were directors of the three Goldman Sachs subsidiaries between May 2012 and March 2013, during which the alleged fraud took place, Thomas said.

Former Goldman Sachs executive Roger Ng was arrested in Malaysia last year and has been extradited to the U.S., where he also faces charges. Ng is expected to return to Malaysia once his trial in the U.S. ends.

Malaysia’s current government has also filed criminal charges against Goldman Sachs and is seeking $7.5 billion in compensation from the bank.