So you’re all very familiar with The Wolf of Wall Street, the movie that features Leonardo DiCaprio as Jordan Belfort, who builds a vast empire based on fraud and corruption, but is later investigated and busted by the FBI. In a strange and seemingly theatrical twist, the movie, The Wolf of Wall Street, is being investigated by the U.S. government because it is believed that the film was financed by fraudulent and corrupt investors. Can’t make this shit up.
The Wall Street Journal is reporting that the U.S. Department of Justice has launched a probe and full investigation into Red Granite Pictures, a major financier of the 2013 film directed by Martin Scorsese. The movie had a $100 million budget and Red Granite Pictures loaned $50 million to fund The Wolf of Wall Street, and the loan has since been repaid. However, the money from Red Granite Pictures was allegedly diverted from a Malaysian state fund that was established to spur local economic development.
Investigators believe that money was provided to Red Granite Pictures by the Malaysian company that goes by the names 1Malaysia Development Bhd. and 1MDB, which was set up seven years ago by the prime minister of Malaysia, Najib Razak. Through a network of offshore shell companies, $155 million was given to Red Granite Pictures, which just so happens to have Riza Aziz as its chairman, who just so happens to be Razak’s stepson. Even more strangely, $681 million magically appeared in PM Razak’s personal bank account last year. Razak said that the $681 million was a gift from former Saudi Arabian King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz. But then, a week later, Razak contradicted himself by stating that the exorbitant amount of money was given to him by an unnamed Saudi businessman.
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The WSJ details a very generous birthday gift to Leo from Red Granite and other extrvagant activities:
Shooting began in August 2012. Three months later, when Mr. DiCaprio had a birthday, the Red Granite principals forged a closer tie to him with an unusual gift: the Oscar statuette presented to Marlon Brando in 1955 for best actor in “On the Waterfront.” People who described the gift said the statuette had been acquired for around $600,000 through a New Jersey memorabilia dealer.
Six months after the movie’s debut, Messrs. DiCaprio, Aziz and Malaysian businessman Jho Low attended the Brazilian World Cup and spent time on the Topaz, a 482-foot yacht owned by Sheikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, chairman of the Abu Dhabi sovereign-wealth fund IPIC, according to people familiar with the excursion. Sheikh Mansour, who is also deputy prime minister of the United Arab Emirates, didn’t attend, they said.
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The company has since refuted all accusations of financial impropriety. “There has never been anything inappropriate about any of Red Granite Pictures or Riza Aziz’s business activities,” said a spokesman for Red Granite Pictures and Aziz. “What they have done and will continue to do is develop and produce successful and acclaimed movies that have to date generated more than $800 million in worldwide box office revenues.”
I just assume anyone that is insanely rich must be a crook of some kind.
[WSJ]
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