Hunt for Jho Low: Interpol’s Red Notice is ‘still active’, says home minister

KUALA LUMPUR, March 15 — Low Taek Jho and other fugitives wanted in Malaysia over their roles in the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) scandal remain elusive, as there has been no confirmed sighting by all 195 member countries under the International Criminal Police Organisation (Interpol), Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail has confirmed.

Saifuddin Nasution said Interpol’s Red Notice is “still active and in effect to this day” for Low and five other individuals linked to the 1MDB scandal, namely — Terence Geh Choh Heng, Casey Tang Keng Chee, Jasmine Loo, Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil and Eric Tan Kim Loong.

“However, out of the 195 Interpol member countries, no country has confirmed the presence of those individuals named in their countries,” he said in a written parliamentary reply yesterday.

Saifuddin Nasution was replying to an oral question yesterday to Sungai Petani MP Dr Taufiq Johari, who had asked for the latest updates on the efforts to track down Low and those five other named individuals to enable all those involved in the 1MDB scandal to be brought to face justice.

“Until today, the police are still in cooperation with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), United States, Singapore authorities, and enforcement agencies from other countries which are also carrying out investigation on 1MDB funds to obtain any information that could help in the tracing and arresting of all individuals named above,” the minister said.

In the same reply, the minister noted that the Home Minister had through the police’s Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) filed charges in absentia against Low, Geh, Tang, Loo and Tan at the magistrate’s courts in Putrajaya and in Kuala Lumpur.

As for Nik Faisal, the minister said the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) is carrying out investigations in relation to SRC International Sdn Bhd.

SRC International was formerly a subsidiary of 1MDB, and later came directly under the Finance Ministry.

The six individuals including Low — otherwise known as Jho Low — had repeatedly been mentioned in the SRC and 1MDB trials against former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.