PetroSaudi Executives Convicted in 1MDB Embezzlement

The Swiss Federal Criminal Court convicted Swiss-British national Patrick Mahony and Swiss-Saudi national Tarek Obaid for embezzling over $1.8 billion from Malaysia's state investment fund 1MDB. The two oil executives created a fraudulent joint venture with 1MDB by falsely claiming their company PetroSaudi was backed by the Saudi government. They siphoned off $1 billion initially and an additional $830 million between 2010 and 2011. Mahony and Obaid were sentenced to six and seven years in prison, respectively, and ordered to repay $1.75 billion. This case is part of the broader 1MDB scandal involving former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, who is also serving a prison sentence. The scandal has had significant international ramifications, impacting numerous financial institutions and individuals globally.