Ng in M’sia to help in 1MDB probe

KUALA LUMPUR: Former Goldman Sachs banker Roger Ng (pic) has arrived in Malaysia to assist investigations on the 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) scandal.Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Razarudin Husain confirmed that Ng arrived in Malaysia at about midnight.

“He has already arrived in Malaysia and is under police custody. However, I cannot divulge more details on the matter for security reasons,” he said when contacted yesterday.

The IGP also did not indicate when Ng would be brought to court to face charges.

The Attorney General’s Chambers have yet to respond to queries regarding Ng’s return to Malaysia.

Officials from the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission said the former banker’s return was a matter handled by the police.

Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail previously said the government’s priority with Ng’s return was to ensure the return of all assets linked to the case.

Saifuddin said Ng was allowed to attend trial in the United States, where he had been convicted but had not yet started serving his jail term.

Last Thursday, Chief US district judge Margo Brodie in Brooklyn had ordered Ng’s surrender to the US Marshals Service by Friday so that he could be turned over to Malaysian law enforcement, who then transported him home.

Ng is facing 10 years in jail in the US after being convicted in New York of helping to loot billions of dollars from 1MDB and would be required to begin his prison term upon his return to that country.

On Sept 5, Singapore’s central bank had banned Ng, also known as Ng Chong Hwa, for life, saying that his “severe misconduct” made it “contrary to public interest to allow him to carry on business as a representative”.

Brodie sentenced Ng in March, 11 months after jurors found him guilty of helping former Goldman boss Tim Leissner embezzle money from 1MDB, launder the proceeds and bribe government officials to win business.

Ng was arrested in Malaysia in November 2018 and agreed to be extradited to the United States.