Jho Low intended to donate US$30m to Obama's campaign according to Leonardo DiCaprio

Hollywood actor Leonardo DiCaprio has told a Washington jury that Malaysian financier Jho Low revealed plans to donate up to US$30 million to support US president Barack Obama's 2012 reelection campaign in what lawmakers are alleging to be part of an illegal foreign influence operation, according to Reuters.

DiCaprio shared that the conversation between him and Low was a casual one on which party Low was in support of. During the conversation, Low brought up his plan to donate around US$20 million to US$30 million to the democratic party. The Hollywood star responded that that amount is "a lot of money". 

Don't miss: YG Entertainment founder reportedly embroiled in sex scandal involving Jho Low

DiCaprio took the witness stand in the trial of Prakazrel "Pras" Michel of the Fugees hip-hop group which reportedly is facing criminal charges for his alleged role in a foreign influence campaign for the Obama and Trump administrations. Michel has denied these allegations. 

Low reportedly also helped DiCaprio financially and supported his charitable foundation as well as funded DiCaprio's 2013 film, The Wolf of Wall Street. However, the film's production firm had to forfeit US$60 million after reaching a civil settlement with the Justice Department in 2018 as the money was allegedly stolen money from 1MDB.DiCaprio has been assisting the US government in its investigations since then. 

He noted that his own legal teams as well as the studios and an outside firm had conducted three separate due diligence probes into Low before agreeing to let him finance The Wolf of Wall Street. No issues were found at the time. 

Prosecutors currently claim that Michel agreed to give money form Low to Obama's 2012 campaign and to hide where the money was coming from. According to US laws, non-US citizens are not allowed to donate to US campaigns. In addition to that, Michel allegedly convinced the Trump administration to not continue its investigation on Low and acted as a foreign agent of China to persuade the administration to agree to repatriate dissident Guo Wengui, according to Reuters.

According to his statement to jurors, DiCaprio has known Michel since at least the 1990s, when he met the Fugees backstage, said media reports. 

DiCaprio's testimony largely was focused on his relationship with Low, the parties he attended that were thrown by the businessman and more. 

Separately, Low is facing federal criminal charges for supposedly stealing US$4.5 billion from Malaysia's 1MDB sovereign wealth fund.

Related articles: 

Deloitte agrees to pay MY govt US$80m to resolve 1MDB scandal
Goldman Sachs chief receives US$10m pay cut over 1MDB scandal
Adabi gets 'punny' with latest sex scandal surrounding Malaysian minister