“For 10 long years, we fought tirelessly to bring these criminals to account. The path was arduous, filled with countless obstacles, sleepless nights, and moments of doubt that tested our resolve.
“Yet we never wavered in our belief that truth and justice would triumph, no matter the power of the opposition.
“As the verdict was read, the weight of those years seemed to lift, if only momentarily. This victory stands as a beacon of hope, a testament that even in the face of immense adversity, justice can and will prevail,” he said in a statement on his LinkedIn profile today.
Justo said the convictions were also proof that a whistleblowing act is not a one-time event, but the start of a long, hard-fought battle. It shows that even the weakest can triumph over the mightiest.
However, he said, the lawyers emerged as the true victors, profiting from the stolen funds as they aimed to prolong the legal proceedings through appeals.
“One final battle remains, as Tarek Obaid seeks to gain access to the more than US$300 million frozen in London.
“I will ensure that this money rightfully belongs to the Malaysian and Venezuelan people, not the criminals,” he said.
Yesterday, a Swiss court convicted Swiss-British national Patrick Mahony and Swiss-Saudi Obaid of defrauding 1MDB of US$1.8 billion to enrich themselves, with Obaid getting at least US$805 million and Mahony at least US$37 million, Reuters reported.
Obaid was sentenced to seven years in prison by the court, while Mahony received a sentence of six years.
Prosecutors said the two men created the fraudulent scheme with fugitive Malaysian financier Low Taek Jho, an adviser to former prime minister Najib Razak, who is serving his sentence in Kajang prison.
Initially extracting US$1 billion from 1MDB so that it could buy a stake in their venture, the accused took a further US$830 million from the fund between 2010 and 2011 as part of an Islamic loan that followed on from their tie-up, prosecutors said.
Malaysian and US investigators estimated a total of US$4.5 billion was siphoned away from 1MDB following its inception in 2009, implicating figures ranging from Najib, Goldman Sachs staff and high-level officials elsewhere.