NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) - Cyprus’ Orthodox Christian Church says it’s ready to give back a fugitive Malaysian financier’s 310,000-euro ($342,000) donation if a probe into wealthy individuals who were granted a Cypriot passport under a lucrative investment program finds that he broke eligibility rules and is stripped of citizenship.
The church said Tuesday it accepted the donation because it was deemed above-board since vetting procedures at the time found no wrongdoing that would deny Low Taek Jho citizenship.
European Union member Cyprus has said it’s moving to strip 26 individuals of citizenship following media reports suggesting that some investors had questionable backgrounds and should not have received passports. Cyprus has since toughened eligibility rules.
Low is accused of involvement in a money laundering and bribery scheme that pilfered billions of dollars from a Malaysian investment fund.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.