Jho Low lawyers trying to stop 1MDB documentary from airing

PETALING JAYA: Lawyers for fugitive businessman Low Taek Jho, or better known as Jho Low, are trying to stop documentary film The Kleptocrats from airing, reports the Hollywood Reporter.

The American entertainment news outlet said lawyers working on behalf of Low sent letters to a number of distributors and platforms asking for the documentary to be removed from their catalogues

According he Hollywood Reporter, London-based law firm Schillings has accused The Kleptocrats of defaming its client by claiming that Low was the central figure in the scandal.

It added that the law firm also claimed that the documentary infringed copyright laws in the use of video footage and could aslo potentially prejudice various ongoing legal proceedings.

The news outlet also noted that filmmakers of the documentary had fought back, claiming that the documentary "not only has been vetted by their UK and US counsels but is also covered by indemnities, thus negating any risk to the distributor".

It also reported that the filmmakers have claimed that the letter was simply "an attempt at intimidation to silence" the documentary.

“Knowing how passionately Schillings believe in the rule of law and justice, I would be surprised if they were not willing to help law enforcement agencies in the United States, Singapore and Malaysia in any way they can, to locate and bring to justice their client, the fugitive Jho Low, so he can answer for his alleged role in one of the largest financial frauds in history, a crime that has deeply affected the lives of so many ordinary Malaysians, struggling to maintain decent living conditions for their families in the face of shameless greed and naked corruption, " producer Mike Lerner of Roast Beef Productions was quoted as saying.

The Kleptocrats is a documentary film on the 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) scandal, directed by Sam Hobkinson and Havana Marking.

According to IMDB, an online film and television database, The Kleptocrats features interviews with investigative reporters from the New York Times, Wall Street Journal and The Hollywood Reporter who covered the 1MDB scandal.