KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 2 ― Malaysia's extraordinary 1MDB corruption scandal allegedly saw top officials loot billions from a government fund and go on a worldwide spending spree, buying up super-yachts, Van Gogh artwork and financing a Hollywood blockbuster.

The controversy had a huge impact in Malaysia, contributing to the ousting of a coalition that had ruled the country since its independence from Britain in 1957. Yesterday the US Department of Justice unveiled its first criminal charges over the scandal with the indictments of two ex-Goldman Sachs bankers and a shadowy international financier.

Here is a look back at the saga:

What is 1MDB?

1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) is a state investment fund which Datuk Seri Najib Razak launched in 2009 shortly after becoming Malaysia's prime minister.

Its portfolio has included power plants and other energy assets in Malaysia and the Middle East, and real estate in Kuala Lumpur.

The fund was closely overseen by Najib.

Whistle-blowers say Low Taek Jho ― commonly known as Jho Low, a jet-setting Malaysian financier close to Najib but with no official positions ― helped set up 1MDB and made key financial decisions.

How did the scandal emerge?

Concerns escalated in 2014 as 1MDB slid into an US$11 billion (RM45.8 million) debt hole, and the intensifying public scrutiny led to a string of revelations concerning missing funds.

The issue exploded in July 2015 when the Wall Street Journal published documents showing Najib received at least $681 million in payments to his personal bank accounts.

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) then piled on the pressure by filing lawsuits to seize some $1.7 billion in assets it said were purchased with stolen 1MDB money.

As allegations mounted, Najib purged 1MDB critics from his government, curbed domestic investigations into the fund and enacted a tough new security law.

Rich living

The DOJ started investigating due to claims that huge sums of stolen Malaysian public money were laundered through the US financial system.

In its civil suits, the department said that more than US$4.5 billion was stolen from 1MDB by high-level officials at the fund and their associates between 2009 and 2015.

Tens of millions of dollars in stolen money were used in 2012 by Najib's stepson Riza Aziz, an aspiring film producer, to fund the Hollywood film The Wolf of Wall Street starring Leonardo DiCaprio.

Hundreds of millions were used, mainly by Riza and Low, to purchase high-end real estate in Beverly Hills, New York and London, a Monet painting for US$35 million, a Van Gogh for US$5.5 million, a US$35 million Bombardier jet and a US$100 million stake in EMI Music Publishing.

Low, who has been photographed partying with the likes of Paris Hilton and DiCaprio, allegedly used more than US$250 million of stolen 1MDB cash to buy a 300-foot (90-metre) luxury yacht.

Election meltdown

Despite Najib's best efforts to keep a lid on the scandal, a drip-feed of allegations continued to emerge, badly hitting the popularity of his long-ruling coalition and contributing to its shock loss in May elections.

A new government headed by veteran politician Mahathir Mohamad, who is 93 and in his second stint as premier, came to office and has reopened investigations.

Najib has been arrested and hit with 38 charges, most linked to the alleged looting of 1MDB, and will go on trial next year. He denies any wrongdoing.

His luxury-loving wife Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor has also been charged over the scandal.

The fraud spanned several countries, and Malaysia is working with foreign law enforcement agencies as it seeks to claw back the stolen funds.

The yacht allegedly purchased by Low was seized in Indonesia and has been returned to Malaysia, with the government putting it up for auction.

US indictments

The DOJ indictments unsealed yesterday are a big step forward in the American investigation, with authorities accusing Low and ex-Goldman bankers Tim Leissner and Ng Chong Hwa of conspiracy to commit money-laundering and bribery.

The charges detail how Goldman underwrote bond issuances worth about US$6.5 billion for 1MDB, for which the bank earned huge fees.

It is alleged that billions were laundered from the fund and kickbacks were paid to officials, and that the bankers circumvented Goldman's oversight tools aimed at countering fraud.

Leissner has pleaded guilty and agreed to pay US$43.7 million. Ng was arrested in Malaysia yesterday. Low, currently still at large, has maintained his innocence. ― AFP