NEW YORK, April 4 (Reuters) – A U.S. prosecutor on Monday called on jurors to convict a former senior banker of Goldman Sachs (GS.N) for aiding and abetting the looting of billions of dollars from Malaysia’s 1MDB sovereign wealth fund as defense accused the government’s star witness. the lie.
In her closing speech at Brooklyn Federal Court, Assistant Attorney General Alexandra Smith said defendant Roger Ng had received more than $ 35 million in rebates from a “brazen” bribery and money laundering scheme and should be held accountable. .
Ng’s lawyer Mark Agnifilo has objected that his client, who was a former Goldman top investment banker for Malaysia, was falsely involved by his former boss, Tim Leisner, the star witness.
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“He has never stopped lying and he has never stopped lying in this courtroom,” Agnifilo said, referring to Leisner.
Closing speeches are expected to end on Tuesday, followed by a judge instructing jurors on the law and the start of the debate.
The nearly two-month process stems from one of the biggest financial scandals in history.
Prosecutors said Goldman helped 1MDB raise $ 6.5 billion through three bond sales, but that $ 4.5 billion was diverted to government officials, bankers and their associates through bribes and concessions.
Goldman paid a fine of nearly $ 3 billion in 2020, and its Malaysian division has agreed to plead guilty. The alleged organizer of the scheme, Malaysian financier Joe Lowe, remains at large.
Ng, 49, has pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to launder money and violate anti-corruption laws and is likely to be the only person to be tried in the United States for 1MDB.
Prosecutors said Ng helped Leissner embezzle hundreds of millions of dollars, launder revenue and bribe employees to win a business for Goldman.
“The damage to the Malaysian people is immeasurable,” Smith told the jury. “It’s deeply unfair to everyone else who plays by the rules.”
Leisner, 52, pleaded guilty in 2018 to charges such as Ng.
Agnifilo focused his closing remarks on Leissner’s credibility after Leissner admitted during testimony that he was “lying a lot.” Read more
While the defense admitted that Ng had introduced Leisner to Lowe, Agnifilo said his client no longer played a role, and Leisner lied to get a lighter sentence.
“Roger is basically the autumn man for this whole thing,” Agnifilo said.
Smith admitted that Leisner sought leniency by testifying, but said other testimonies supported his story.
“What he told you about the crimes he committed with the defendant and others is supported by other evidence,” Smith said. “You already know that the accused is guilty of the other evidence.”
Ng admitted he received $ 35 million from Leissner, but jurors will have to decide what the money was for.
Leissner said the money was a discount of 1MDB and that he agreed with Ng to tell the banks processing the transfers a “cover-up” that it came from a legitimate business venture between their wives. Read more
Ng’s wife, Hwi Bin Lim, testified to the defense that she had invested $ 6 million in the mid-2000s in a Chinese company owned by the family of Leisner’s then-wife, Judy Chan.
She said $ 35 million was her return on the investment. Read more
Lowe was indicted in 2018 along with Ng. Malaysian authorities say Low is in China, which Beijing denies.
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Report by Luke Cohen in New York; Edited by Noelin Walder, Bill Bercrot, Richard Chang and David Gregorio
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