BANGKOK: Thai police have completed investigations into Xavier Justo and submitted his case to state prosecutors.
Police said Justo tried to blackmail his former employer, PetroSaudi International, an energy company that was involved in a failed venture with Malaysian government-owned 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) in 2009.
He has signed a confession in the hope of a reduced sentence.
The crime carries a jail sentence of one year to 10 years and a fine of 2,000 baht to 20,000 baht (RM220 to RM2,209).
It is now up to the state prosecutors to indict Justo, deputy
commander of Thailand’s Crime Suppression Division, police colonel
Kornchai Klayklueng, told The Straits Times yesterday.
Justo has been remanded in a Thai prison since he was arrested at his home on Koh Samui island in June.
In 2013, the former PetroSaudi executive allegedly demanded 2.5 million Swiss francs (RM9.94mil) from his former employer, but was rejected.
PetroSaudi made a complaint to the Thai police in May this year, after documents showing 1MDB’s financial mismanagement were published by news website Sarawak Report.
In an interview with The Straits Times last month while under custody, Justo revealed that he was promised US$2mil (RM7.7mil) by Malaysian businessman Tong Kooi Ong for the documents.
But he had yet to receive the money up to the point when he was arrested.
In response to Justo’s revelations, Tong, the owner of The Edge Media Group, admitted he misled Justo into believing that he would be paid for the data.
“That was the only way to get hold of the evidence to expose how a small group of Malaysians and foreigners cheated the people of Malaysia of US$1.83bil (RM7.1bil),” he said in a joint statement with the media group’s publisher Ho Kay Tat.
Malaysian police, who have tried to gain access to Justo, have so far not been allowed any contact with him, said police colonel Kornchai. — The Straits Times / Asia News Network
Police said Justo tried to blackmail his former employer, PetroSaudi International, an energy company that was involved in a failed venture with Malaysian government-owned 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) in 2009.
He has signed a confession in the hope of a reduced sentence.
The crime carries a jail sentence of one year to 10 years and a fine of 2,000 baht to 20,000 baht (RM220 to RM2,209).
Justo has been remanded in a Thai prison since he was arrested at his home on Koh Samui island in June.
In 2013, the former PetroSaudi executive allegedly demanded 2.5 million Swiss francs (RM9.94mil) from his former employer, but was rejected.
PetroSaudi made a complaint to the Thai police in May this year, after documents showing 1MDB’s financial mismanagement were published by news website Sarawak Report.
In an interview with The Straits Times last month while under custody, Justo revealed that he was promised US$2mil (RM7.7mil) by Malaysian businessman Tong Kooi Ong for the documents.
But he had yet to receive the money up to the point when he was arrested.
In response to Justo’s revelations, Tong, the owner of The Edge Media Group, admitted he misled Justo into believing that he would be paid for the data.
“That was the only way to get hold of the evidence to expose how a small group of Malaysians and foreigners cheated the people of Malaysia of US$1.83bil (RM7.1bil),” he said in a joint statement with the media group’s publisher Ho Kay Tat.
Malaysian police, who have tried to gain access to Justo, have so far not been allowed any contact with him, said police colonel Kornchai. — The Straits Times / Asia News Network
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