KUALA LAMPUR – Malaysian police said Friday they found cash amounting toalmost $30 million in a raid on a luxury apartment as they probedcorruption allegations swirling around ousted leader Najib Razak.
The money was seized along with 284 boxes containing designer handbags, aswell as watches and jewellery from a condominium in Kuala Lumpur, which wasraided along with Najib´s home and other sites last week.
Najib´s coalition was thrown out of power for the first time in over sixdecades in the May 9 poll, defeated by a reformist alliance headed by hisformer mentor Mahathir Mohamad.
Public disgust at allegations of corruption swirling around Najib was amajor factor for the loss, with the ex-leader, his family and croniesaccused of looting billions of dollars from sovereign wealth fund 1MDB.
There has been much speculation about what the seized goods consisted ofand their value after five trucks were reportedly brought in to help movethe vast stash.
Giving an update, the police´s head of commercial crime Amar Singh said:”From the money found, there were 26 currencies, the total amount as ofyesterday is 114 million (ringgit) ($28.6 million).”
The money was found in 35 bags while another 37 bags contained watches andjewellery, he told a press conference. The value of other items will becalculated later, he said.
The seizure of the luxury goods added to public scorn of Najib´s wifeRosmah Mansor, long reviled by Malaysians for her perceived haughtydemeanour and reported vast collection of designer bags, clothing andjewellery.
Her love of overseas shopping trips, as middle class Malaysians strugglewith rising living costs, added to a sense of spreading, deeply-entrenchedrot in the country´s long-ruling elite.
The couple´s fall from grace has been swift and hard.
They have been barred from leaving the country and the ex-premier has beenquestioned by anti-graft investigators over claims 1MDB money ended up inhis bank accounts, and looks likely to be charged.
Najib and the fund deny any wrongdoing.