PUTRAJAYA, March 1 ― Approximately RM10 million worth of Datuk Rohana Rozhan’s assets have been frozen following investigations into the former Astro Malaysia Holdings Bhd CEO over her alleged connection to the 1MDB global financial scandal, said Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief Tan Sri Azam Baki.
This comes after Tim Leissner, former chief of Goldman Sachs’ South-east Asia operations, said in the 1MDB trial in the United States that he used money received from 1MDB to buy a US$10 million (RM41.8 million) house in London for Rohana.
“The amount that we are looking for is US$10 million. I think so far around RM10 million have been frozen in terms of money and assets.
“This includes the house in London and others related to it,” he said at a press conference at the MACC headquarters today.
Azam said the MACC is also seeking statements from people in the US in relation to ongoing investigations.
Rohana has been called for questioning at the MACC headquarters here several times last month to assist with investigations into Leissner’s claims.
The most recent questioning took place just yesterday.
On February 24, Rohana was reported to have spent about nine hours at the MACC headquarters to give her statement to the Commission to assist in the investigation under Section 4(1) of the Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act 2001.
Rohana was named in Leissner’s testimony in a US federal court as a recipient of misappropriated funds he had received from the Malaysian sovereign investment fund back in 2013.
International news wire Bloomberg reported Leissner telling US prosecutor Drew Rolle in the US court last Tuesday that he bought Rohana a US$10 million house in London because she had threatened to expose his links to 1MDB.
Leissner is the US prosecution’s star witness in its ongoing 1MDB trial of Malaysian former banker Roger Ng, who was formerly the Malaysian head of investment banking at Goldman Sachs.
Leissner claimed that Rohana was one of his lovers at that time, even while Goldman had business dealings with Astro.
Rohana resigned from Astro in 2019.
