Federal authorities have recovered a $1.3 million USD Pablo Picasso drawing connected to the 1MDB scandal, a massive corruption case involving Malaysia’s sovereign wealth fund. Jasmine Loo Ai Swan, former general counsel for 1MDB, agreed to surrender the Picasso and a Swiss bank account tied to embezzled funds, totaling around $1.8 million USD, according to the U.S. Justice Department.
Jho Low, the alleged mastermind behind the 1MDB fraud, remains a fugitive. From 2009 to 2015, over $4.5 billion was misappropriated from 1MDB by officials and associates, including Low and Loo. These funds were funneled through international money laundering and bribery schemes as per a report by Artnet.
The recovered Picasso, ‘Trois femmes nues et buste d’homme’ (1969), was bought by Loo for $1.3 million USD at Christie’s in 2014. The Justice Department has also seized nearly $85 million USD worth of assets tied to Low, including artworks by Van Gogh, Monet, Basquiat, and Warhol.
So far, the U.S. has helped return over $1.4 billion USD to Malaysia. Despite the asset recovery, Loo faces ongoing criminal charges, and Low has been ordered to forfeit additional assets, including diamonds bought for his mother.
