In her final hearing in Brooklyn federal court, Assistant Attorney General Alexandra Smith said defendant Roger Ng received more than $ 35 million in bribes from the “brazen” bribery and money laundering program and must be held accountable. Ng’s lawyer, Marc Agnifilo, replied that his client, who was Goldman’s former top investment banker for Malaysia, had been falsely accused by his protagonist Tim Leissner’s former boss. Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register “He never stopped lying and he never stopped lying in this room,” Agnifilo said, referring to Leissner. The final hearings are expected to conclude on Tuesday and will be followed by a judge giving instructions to jurors on the law and the start of consultations. The nearly two-month trial stemmed from one of the biggest financial scandals in history. Prosecutors said Goldman helped raise $ 6.5 billion from 1MDB through three bond sales, but that $ 4.5 billion was channeled to government officials, bankers and their associates through bribes and kickbacks. Goldman paid a fine of almost $ 3 billion in 2020 and its Malaysian subsidiary agreed to plead guilty. The suspected mastermind of the program, Malaysian financier Jho Low, remains at large. Ng, 49, pleaded not guilty to money laundering and anti-corruption law and will likely be the only person to stand trial in the United States for 1MDB. Prosecutors say Ng helped Leissner embezzle hundreds of millions of dollars, launder revenue and bribe officials to win business for Goldman. “The damage to the people of Malaysia is incalculable,” Smith told the jury. “It’s deeply unfair for everyone else to play by the rules.” Leissner, 52, pleaded guilty in 2018 to similar charges with Ng. Agnifilo focused his last argument on Leissner’s credibility, after Leissner admitted during his testimony that he “lied a lot”. read more While the defense acknowledged that Ng had introduced Leissner to Low, Agnifilo said his client had no other role to play and Leissner lied to be given a lighter sentence. “Roger is basically the fall guy for all this stuff,” said Agnifilo. Smith acknowledged that Leisner had sought leniency by testifying, but said other testimonies supported his story. “What he told you about the crimes he committed with the accused and others is supported and consistent with other evidence,” Smith said. “You already know that the accused is guilty of the other evidence.” Ng admitted to receiving $ 35 million from Leissner, but jurors will have to clarify what the money was for. Leisner said the money represented bribes from 1MDB and that he agreed with Ng to tell the transfer banks a “cover story” that it came from a legitimate business venture between their spouses. read more Ng’s wife, Hwee Bin Lim, testified that she invested $ 6 million in the mid-2000s in a Chinese company owned by the family of Leissner’s then-wife, Judy Chan. She said $ 35 million was her return on that investment. read more Low was indicted in 2018 along with Ng. Malaysian authorities say Low is in China, which Beijing denies. Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register Report by Luc Cohen in New York. Editing by Noeleen Walder, Bill Berkrot, Richard Chang and David Gregorio Our role models: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
