Leonardo DiCaprio’s controversy involving linkage with a fugitive Malaysian businessman, who has been on the run for years, has resurfaced as Bloomberg Businessweek revisits undisclosed FBI files. The said documents contain details on the agency’s intense grilling of the actor to find out the real deal between him and Low.
Jho Low is known as the mastermind of the sovereign wealth fund scheme called 1Malaysia Development Berhad, a scandal that imprisoned the country’s former prime minister for money laundering. Low has been off the grid for almost eight years after a warrant of arrest was issued in 2016, although the authorities believe he is covering his tracks in China.
Leonardo DiCaprio Reveals Intimate Relationship With Fugitive Financier Jho Low
Three Department of Justice prosecutors, an FBI special agent, and an IRS investigator put Leonardo DiCaprio on the hot seat in April 2018, when they found out the actor met Low at a nightclub in 2010. They had several deals, although the most notable would be DiCaprio’s The Wolf of Wall Street film.
The duo discussed funding more films, building a Warner Bros. theme park in Asia, and an eco-friendly resort in Belize, allocating $1 billion for these lofty projects. They became good friends and even had pet names for each other: DiCaprio called Low “my man,” and the businessman referred to the actor as “Ldogg.”
As per a report from THR, DiCaprio explained:
“I was working for him, and that business also translates into being social. And so, we saw each other more, and there was more interaction.”
Jho Low is notoriously known for schmoozing Hollywood celebrities and giving luxurious presents. His friendship with DiCaprio was severed after he failed to give a Roy Lichtenstein piece, which Low promised, for the actor’s environmental foundation’s annual fundraiser in St. Tropez in 2015.
The FBI reportedly confiscated several gifts that Low gave to the actor, such as the first edition of The Great Gatsby and Marlon Brando’s Oscar statuette. DiCaprio confessed to the authorities that he has no idea where Low gets his wealth and that the deals they made were first conveyed to his team before they give the actor the go signal.
His manager, Rick Yorn, was reportedly involved in the dealings as well. Although they did a background check on the Malaysian financier, the actor admitted he did not thoroughly read it.
Other High-Profile Celebrities Involved In Jho Low Scandal
Leonardo DiCaprio is not the only celebrity on the FBI’s list in connection with Jho Low. Social media star, Kim Kardashian also appears in Bloomberg’s report.
She recalled to the police how Low once offered her a Basquiat artwork, although the more interesting story was when Kardashian flew home with a trash bag containing $250,000 that she got from a gambling escapade organized by Low in Las Vegas. Rapper Pras Michel will face a trial in late March after the feds discovered his involvement with the businessman.
So far, there have been no reports whatsoever of DiCaprio or even Kardashian being examined for any crimes or wrongdoings. The FBI is reportedly only looking into their business with the wanted fugitive.
Leonardo DiCaprio’s lawyers wrote a press release requesting the prosecutors to extend their gratitude for the actor’s cooperation, but the government declined.
Source: THR
