Jody Godoy and Luc Cohen

NEW YORK, Reuters – Former Goldman Sachs (NYSE 🙂 banker Tim Leissner was the star witness for prosecution in a criminal case tied to Malaysia’s 1MDB sovereign asset fund. He admitted that he “lied a lot” during his lifetime under cross-examination.

Roger Ng (49) has pleaded guilty to conspiring to conceal money and violating an anti-bribery statute. Leissner will be testifying.

Leissner (52) was Ng’s boss in Goldman and pleaded guilty to the same charges in 2018. He also agreed to cooperate.

Ng is trying to prove that Leissner was actually the architect of the scheme and was lying to Ng in an effort to avoid prison.

These charges are a result of one the most scandalous financial transactions in human history. Prosecutors claim that Goldman raised $6.5B for 1MDB from 2009 through 2014 through bonds sales. They also earned $600M in fees. However, $4.5B was diverted through kickbacks to bankers, officials and other associates.

Marc Agnifilo was Ng’s lawyer and questioned Leissner Tuesday over his romances with five women. He admitted to having been secretly married twice with two women, as well as forging a divorce document to fool a woman that he wanted.

Leissner admitted that he had lied extensively and regretted his choices.

Leissner said that Ng was a major player in the scheme. He also testified that he paid $35 million in kickbacks for Ng, Goldman’s Malaysian banker. Leissner was responsible for overseeing the Southeast Asia branch of Goldman Sachs.

Leissner reported that Ng left Goldman after 2014.

Leissner had earlier testified that he was served with a subpoena by the FBI in February 2016. Hwee Bin Lim and Ng suggested to Leissner, Leissner, they consult a master in feng Shui.

Leissner, Ng and Lim allegedly concocted a cover story involving Lim and Leissner’s former-wife Judy Chan in order to justify the $35million.

Ng may find the testimony problematic as Ng argued that Ng derived the money they call “ill-gotten profits” from an actual business venture the men had with their wives.

Lim is expected to be called to testify by Ng’s lawyers.

Goldman, in 2020, paid nearly $3B in penalties and organized for Malaysia’s unit to plead guilty at U.S. courts.