According to a report in The Australian newspaper Alex Turnbull claimed he was sidelined from his executive position at Goldman Sachs in Singapore and reprimanded after he raised concerns about the company’s dealing with Malaysian fund 1 Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB).
Malaysia’s former prime minister and current opposition leader Mahathir Mohammed on Friday called on Prime Minister Turnbull to raise the issue of 1MDB when he meets current Prime Minister Najib Razak next week.
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Mahathir also said Alex Turnbull should share what he knows about Goldman Sachs’ involvement in the scandal with the relevant authorities in Singapore, United States and Malaysia. It is not known whether Alex Turnbull has already spoken with those authorities.
The Australian report alleges that Alex Turnbull raised concerns with colleagues at Goldman Sachs regarding US$6 billion of bonds raised for 1MDB by the company in Singapore in 2012 and 2013.
"Whistleblowing is a shit business," he was quoted by The Australian as saying.
However, Alex Turnbull told the Sydney Morning Herald he was misquoted by The Australian.
The reports come at an awkward time for Malcolm Turnbull as he prepares to welcome Mr Najib and other regional leaders at the ASEAN-Australia Special Summit in Sydney next week.
Malcolm Turnbull with Alex Turnbull Source: Social media.
Mr Najib has been embroiled in scandal since reports first emerged in 2015, alleging $900 million siphoned from the 1MDB fund was deposited into his personal bank accounts.
Najib denied all wrongdoing and said the money in his accounts were donations from the Saudi Arabian royal family. He also claimed the reports were part of a conspiracy to topple his government.
Allegations of international money laundering connected to the fund has prompted investigations in Switzerland, Singapore, the UK and the United States.
Last year the US Department of Justice seized $1.3 billion in assets held by close associates and relatives of Mr Najib allegedly siphoned from 1MDB. Singapore also jailed three bankers last year for money laundering connected to the fund.
Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak Source: AAP
Alex Turnbull reportedly told The Australian newspaper that details of his whistleblowing would appear in an upcoming book on the 1MDB scandal written by two Wall Street Journal reporters.
In an interview with SBS News last year, Mahathir accused Australian authorities of not investigating Australian links to the 1MDB scandal, in reference to ANZ bank’s shareholdings in the Malaysian bank AmBank, which is at the centre of money laundering allegations.
