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Billion Dollar Whale in Shanghai? Businessman at centre of $4.5 billion scam remains missing
Fugitive Malaysian financier Low Taek Jho — better known as Jho Low — is allegedly residing in a lavish mansion in Shanghai, two journalists have claimed.
Fugitive Malaysian financier Low Taek Jho — better known as Jho Low — is allegedly residing in a lavish mansion in Shanghai’s ultra-exclusive Green Hills neighbourhood, investigative journalists have claimed. According to a recent live stream by reporters Bradley Hope and Tom Wright, Low is living under a fake identity in China’s Shanghai, using a forged Australian passport with the name Constantinos Achilles Veis.
The claim has revived global interest in Low’s whereabouts, as he continues to elude capture despite being the central figure in one of the world’s biggest financial scandals.
On the run since 2015 over multibillion-dollar 1MDB scandal
According to The Strait Times, Low has been a fugitive since 2015, after authorities began probing the massive fraud involving 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), a state investment fund that he allegedly helped loot. The scandal, which sent shockwaves through Malaysia’s political and financial systems, involved the misappropriation of at least US$4.5 billion.
He is currently wanted by both the United States and Malaysia, with an Interpol Red Notice issued against him in 2018.
Luxury real estate, art, superyachts and Hollywood ties
Prosecutors allege that Low used stolen 1MDB funds to finance a life of extravagance – including purchasing luxury real estate across the United States, acquiring rare artwork, a private jet, and even a superyacht. He also used the money to build relationships in Hollywood.
Low famously struck up a friendship with Leonardo DiCaprio and was linked to the financing of Martin Scorsese’s 2013 film The Wolf of Wall Street. In 2016, the US Department of Justice alleged that the film’s funding came from embezzled 1MDB money, reported Variety. DiCaprio, unaware of the source of the funds at the time, even thanked Low in his Golden Globes acceptance speech in 2014.
Fresh claims from journalists about Low’s whereabouts
The new claim about Low’s current location was made during a livestream titled Finding Jho Low by Hope and Wright — the former Wall Street Journal journalists who played a central role in exposing the 1MDB scandal and co-authored the best-selling book Billion Dollar Whale.
Billion Dollar Whale is a non-fiction book based on Jho Low’s life story and embezzlement scandal.
Citing newly obtained documents and multiple sources, the duo claimed that Low has assumed a new identity and continues to live in China. They further alleged that he now works as a behind-the-scenes strategist for the Chinese government, reportedly advising sanctioned Chinese companies on navigating global restrictions.
Malaysia says it has received no confirmation
In response to the report, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said on Saturday that his government had not received any information confirming Low’s alleged presence in Shanghai. “I have no information; we have yet to receive anything. Let me check. I’ve read [the media reports]. I need to verify with the Home Minister,” he told reporters after an event in Penang, as reported by The Star.
