EX-FUGEES STAR IN TRIAL OF THE DECADE

WASHINGTON. – It’s the strangest, starriest court case you might not yet have heard of.

Jury selection has begun in the trial of former Fugees musician Prakazrel “Pras” Michel – a case with global intrigue, a multi-billion-dollar corruption scheme, and a fugitive Malaysian tycoon sometimes referred to as Asia’s “Great Gatsby”.

Prosecutors allege that Mr Michel, 50, took more than US$100m from Malaysian businessman Jho Low to convince former US President Donald Trump to abandon an investigation.

Additionally, Mr Michel stands accused of making illegal contributions to Barack Obama’s 2012 US presidential campaign, using a network of third parties paid with foreign money.

He now faces charges including conspiracy, witness tampering, and a failure to register as a foreign agent.

If convicted, he faces more than 20 years in prison. Mr Michel has denied any wilful wrongdoing in the case.

The trial is expected to last most of April – and could see Hollywood A-listers including Leonardo DiCaprio, Trump allies Rudy Giuliani and Steve Bannon, and American casino mogul Steve Wynn testify as witnesses.

Here are some of the players and potential witnesses in the case, and how they’re involved:

At the heart of the trial is co-defendant Jho Low, a 41-year-old Malaysian businessman who is alleged to have stolen billions of dollars from his country’s sovereign wealth fund in the now-infamous 1MDB scheme, history’s largest embezzlement case.

Some of the money was allegedly used to shower gifts on celebrities, including Mr DiCaprio, Kim Kardashian, and model Miranda Kerr.

Rolling Stone has reported that Mr Low and Mr Michel first met at a Manhattan nightclub in 2006.

Court documents accuse Mr Low of using Mr Michel as a funnel for illegal money – as much as US$100m – used in a bid to “obtain foreign access to, and influence with, high-ranking United States government officials for financial benefit”.

Investigators believe Mr Low wanted to use the money to help lobby the Trump administration and Justice Department to drop their investigation into Mr Low’s involvement in the 1MDB scheme, for which he was ultimately indicted by US prosecutors in 2018.

Among those named as potential witnesses in the case is actor Leonardo DiCaprio, who famously portrayed a real-life financial crook in the 2013 film “– Wolf of Wall Street” – which was partially funded by a firm tied to Mr Low.

Bloomberg has reported that Mr Low was “especially generous” with Mr DiCaprio and donated a US$3.2m Picasso to his charity, as well as a US$9.2m piece from Jean-Michel Basquiat. – BBC.