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Fugitive Malaysian businessman Low Taek Jho, fleeing 1MDB corruption scandal engulfing Najib Razak, has ‘either left Macau or applied for asylum’

Security insider in Macau says using casino hub as sanctuary ‘makes sense’

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Immigration authorities in Macau have yet to respond to questions about a possible asylum application being lodged by Low Taek Jho. Photo: Sam Tsang

Fugitive Malaysian businessman Low Taek Jho is either no longer in Macau or has launched an 11th-hour asylum bid to use the world’s richest gaming hub as a bolthole.

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Authorities in Hong Kong and Macau had been tight-lipped over claims Low, wanted in connection with the 1MDB corruption scandal ­engulfing former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak, had slipped the net and was hiding out in the former Portuguese enclave.

A security insider in Macau told the Post the potential for Low – widely known as Jho Low – to have seen the city as a sanctuary from multiple attempts by governments around the region to secure his arrest and extradition “makes sense”.

The insider added the maximum period of 30 days he would legally be allowed to stay in the city had passed and his only option would be to make an asylum request with immigration authorities.

“Rumours that he is, or has been, spending time in Macau have been circulating for more than a month now, and I have to say this makes sense because, while Malaysia has mutual legal assistance agreements with Hong Kong, they do not have these arrangements with Macau,” the security insider said.

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