KUALA LUMPUR – Pras Michel, a member of 90s hip hop band Fugees, has claimed that Malaysian financier Low Taek Jho paid him US$20 million (RM88.6 million) to get a photo taken with then US president Barack Obama back in 2012.
During his lobbying trial in Washington, Michel said that Low, notoriously known as Jho Low, had paid the amount over nine months to hire him as a “celebrity surrogate” to make the photo wish a reality.
“I basically asked for US$1 million to begin to think about how I would get this photo…I was going to try,” he was quoted as saying by Bloomberg.
In the end, Low managed to have his photograph shot with Obama and former US first lady Michelle Obama at a White House Christmas party.
Michel, a Grammy award-winning rapper, described Low as a “wealthy man willing to do anything, spend any type of money” to take a photo with Obama.
However, Michel added that Low was “too hot” to be invited to fundraisers due to his reputation.
“My understanding is that the (Obama’s) campaign thought he (Low) was too hot. They didn’t want the optics at that time,” he was quoted as saying.
“At that point, Low was a party guy – Vegas, champagne, parties with Paris Hilton. The campaign just didn’t want that,” he added.
Michel is on trial on 12 charges linked to illegal contributions to Obama’s 2012 re-election campaign.
The 50-year-old Haitian-American allegedly channelled a chunk of RM440 million given to him by Low into Obama’s campaign, concealing the source of the funds via shell companies.
It is illegal for foreign nationals to contribute to US election campaigns.
Meanwhile, actor Leonardo DiCaprio, who was one of the witnesses in Michel’s trial, had told the court that his legal team had done a background check on Low when the latter expressed interest in funding the film The Wolf of Wall Street
DiCaprio said he was “given the green light” by his lawyers, as well as the studios, to accept the funding.
The actor said Low was seen as a “legitimate businessperson”, and also accepted gifts for his environmental foundation from the Penang-born businessman.
He also told the court of the lavish parties thrown by Low on boats and nightclubs, with Michel present on some occasions. – The Vibes, April 19, 2023
