US to charge ex-Goldman Sachs bankers over ties to money laundering scandal, report says

The alleged mastermind of the fraud remains at large, and was last seen in China

A luxury yacht belonging to Jho Low was seized earlier this year (REUTERS)

The US department of justice is planning to bring criminal charges against two former Goldman Sachs bankers and a third party over allegations linked to a plot to launder money from Malaysian sovereign wealth fund 1MDB.

The Wall Street Journal has reported that Tim Leissner, a former partner at GS, is expected to plead guilty to conspiracy to launder money and conspiracy to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and will forfeit $43.7m (£33.8m).

Roger Ng, another ex-Goldman banker, has been arrested in Malaysia.

However, Jho Low, the Malaysian financier who allegedly masterminded the fraud, remains at large. He was last seen in China.

A civil lawsuit previously filed in a California federal court alleged that, between 2009 and 2014, Low and his associates moved $4.5bn from 1MDB into bank accounts all over the world, through transactions made to look like legitimate investments.

US attorney general Jeff Sessions said the 1MDB scandal was “kleptocracy at its worst” in a speech last December.

Goldman, which generated about $600m in fees for its work with 1MDB, has in the past repeatedly denied any wrongdoing and said it is fully cooperating with authorities.

Additional reporting by newswires