pic by BLOOMBERG

ON THE run, businessman Low Taek Jhow (picture), who is high on the wanted list of key individuals in the 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) probe, is in Macau.

The whereabout of the flamboyant fugitive, who is popularly known as Jho Low, was confirmed by Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Mohamad Fuzi Harun.

Mohamad Fuzi said Jho Low escaped to Macau based on the information the police obtained while tracking him down in Hong Kong recently.

“This latest information was obtained after a team from Bukit Aman (federal police) was deployed to Hong Kong to track down the fugitive.

“We were informed that Jho Low had fled to Macau when the team arrived there (Hong Kong),” he said based on a Bernama report.

However, he declined to comment whether the police had visited Jho Low’s residence or his office in Hong Kong.

The Malaysian Reserve reported last month that Jho Low was likely hiding in Macau. Malaysia and the former Portuguese colony, a gambling haven, do not have an extradition agreement.

The Penang-born financier, who acquainted himself with some of the world’s famous stars, is wanted by the Malaysian authorities over the billions allegedly stolen from 1MDB.

Jho Low is said to be the central figure in what has been described as one of the world’s most elaborate and largest financial scandals. He is suspected of masterminding the transactions related to 1MDB.

Jho Low has never been arrested or charged for any of the crimes. He has remained elusive since news about 1MDB surfaced in 2014.

Recent reports suggested he was willing to cooperate with the new Pakatan Harapan government over the 1MDB investigation and had proposed a meeting in Dubai.

The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) rejected the proposal, saying that he has to come back to Malaysia if he wanted to talk.

MACC chief commissioner Datuk Seri Mohd Shukri Abdull was reported as saying that Jho Low is wanted not just by the MACC, but enforcement agencies worldwide such as in the US and Singapore.

The MACC also recently raided an apartment along Jalan Kia Peng, Kuala Lumpur, allegedly belonging to Jho Low.

Singapore also had announced that an arrest warrant had been issued for the financier since May 2016. The city-state had also requested that Interpol published Red Notices for Jho Low and Tan Kim Loong in October 2016 for suspected offences in the republic.

Media reports had suggested that Jho Low has been shuttling between Phuket, Thailand, China and Taiwan.

The Immigration Department has cancelled Jho Low’s passport at the request of the MACC.