Malaysia 1MDB scandal: is Jho Low hiding in China? It depends on whom you ask

Where is Jho Low? It is an astoundingly direct question, yet seemingly, there is no straightforward answer - at least not one that can be extracted from official sources.

Recently, discussions concerning the alleged mastermind of the 1MDB financial scandal's whereabouts have re-emerged, which got me thinking about this complication.

The topic was reignited, in part, after Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said last week that his government was collaborating with "many countries" to expedite Low's extradition to the Southeast Asian nation.

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"It's a complicated process," Anwar said, refraining from disclosing specific countries and mentioning that the endeavour involved numerous "countries, intelligence services, Interpol, et cetera."

That remark caught the attention of Tom Wright, one of the two former Wall Street Journal reporters who best documented Low's rise to infamy.

"Several countries = China," Wright declared on Twitter.

For some time now, Wright and Bradley Hope, co-authors of the book on Low titled Billion Dollar Whale, have asserted - based on their sources - that Low is in China. The duo currently run a media company called Project Brazen and have shared their views on the matter in newsletters and podcasts.

Hope and Wright are well respected within the regional news industry, and their followers - myself included - trust that their public statements are based on a solid factual foundation. After all, their credibility is at stake.

Beijing, on the other hand, has consistently denied any basis for this claim.

Consider its response in 2020 when Malaysia's then-national police chief Abdul Hamid Bador informed local media that Low was hiding in Macau, and that attempts to extradite him had faltered due to Chinese authorities' perceived insincerity in cooperation.

The Chinese embassy in Kuala Lumpur promptly reacted with outrage, labelling the accusation as "groundless and unacceptable."

"The position of the Chinese government on combating crime is consistent and clear-cut," the embassy announced in a widely-reported statement. "China does not and will never shelter foreign criminals."

Earlier remarks were less emphatic but conveyed the same message: Beijing would not harbour a foreign fugitive.

In 2018, Hope and Wright - still Wall Street Journal reporters at the time - reported that Low was moving freely within China after that year's Malaysian election blew the 1MDB scandal wide open.

The election unseated prime minister Najib Razak, who is now imprisoned for convictions related to the multibillion-dollar heist.

The Journal article detailed Low's fear of the election outcome and his subsequent movement "between hotel suites and luxury apartments in Chinese cities, including Hong Kong and Shanghai, with his wife, two young children and close associates."

In the same article, China's foreign ministry claimed ignorance of the 1MDB case, without mentioning Low by name.

The foreign ministry stated that it valued cooperation with foreign governments on judicial matters and would address their requests according to the law.

I must apply the same logic I use in trusting Hope and Wright when evaluating - and accepting at face value - these statements from high-ranking Chinese officials.

After all, what incentive is there to so vehemently adopt a stance that could severely damage one's reputation if proven blatantly false?

That being said, it is crucial to acknowledge that China has not officially contested Wright and Hope's recent claims that Low is hiding on the mainland - which the Post and others have reported.

Perhaps the truth will come to light when - and if - Low is finally extradited to Malaysia to face justice.

Low and his entourage's location since 2016 - when an Interpol red notice was first issued against the businessman - will undoubtedly be scrutinised in any court proceeding examining his alleged involvement in the 1MDB scandal.

As I see it, it would be preposterous for Anwar or others to argue for maintaining Low's "hiding place" as a secret even after he is brought to Malaysian soil.

This article originally appeared on the South China Morning Post (SCMP).

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