Leonardo DiCaprio made a behind-closed-doors appearance in court in Washington, D.C. to testify in a federal case against Fugees rapper Prakazrel “Pras” Michel. The rapper is facing conspiracy and fraud charges over his connection to fugitive Malaysian financier Low Taek Jho. DiCaprio, who is not facing charges himself, was called to testify about his relationship with Michel and Low.
Michel allegedly laundered money Low allegedly embezzled from a state-owned investment bank in Malaysia, investigators said. The stolen cash was then allegedly used to make illegal contributions to President Barack Obama’s 2012 re-election campaign. Michel also worked with Low and others to allegedly use backchannel sources to unsuccessfully convince President Donald Trump’s administration to drop a federal fraud investigation into Low, reports CBS News. They also hoped to convince the Trump administration to send a Chinese dissident back to China to face criminal charges.
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The Justice Department also accused Low of using $500 million stolen from the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) with wire transfers to shell companies. Some of the proceeds were used to make DiCaprio’s 2014 hit movie The Wolf of Wall Street (which itself was about financial crimes).
DiCaprio testified that he met Low in Las Vegas around 2010 at a birthday party. He knew Low was famous for “lavish parties” where celebrities gathered. He described Low as a “prodigy in the business world” and recalled Low asking him if he needed help funding a project. DiCaprio brought up The Wolf of Wall Street, and Low agreed to back it on a “personal level,” the actor testified and helped convince others to back the movie.
Low also contributed gifts and donations to DiCaprio’s environmental charity, the actor said. The financier never donated in his own name, though. DiCaprio said he mostly spoke with Low’s “right-hand man,” Eric Tan.
As for his relationship with Michel, DiCaprio said it dated back years. They likely met at a Fugees concert and became social friends. Michel’s defense attorney even suggested he was invited to celebrate Thanksgiving with DiCaprio. The Titanic actor wasn’t sure of this, but noted it was “possible.”
DiCaprio recalled having a “casual conversation” with Low about who to support in the 2012 presidential election. Low told DiCaprio that he and others were prepared to donate $20 million to $30 million to support the Democratic Party. In 2015, DiCaprio cut all ties with Low when investigators began looking into Low’s ties to the 1MDB scandal. In 2018, producers of The Wolf of Wall Street agreed to pay back $60 million to the U.S. government.
Investigators say Michel and Low schemed to donate about $2 million to Obama’s campaign in 2012, according to charging documents. It is illegal for foreign money to be used in presidential elections, so the two allegedly created shell companies and straw donors to distribute Low’s money to the campaign and other groups supporting Obama’s reelection. Michel allegedly lied on disclosure forms to disguise Low’s contributions and deceive the Obama campaign, prosecutors said. There is no evidence that Obama-era officials or DiCaprio were aware of Michel and Low’s alleged crimes. Michel pleaded not guilty to the charges. His team has tried to get the charges to be dismissed, arguing that Michel thought he was acting in the U.S.’ best interest.
