Why Has A 'Wolf Of Wall Street' Movie Producer Been Arrested?

In a scenario straight of the film he is most famous for, Variety reports that “The Wolf Of Wall Street” producer Riza Aziz was arrested on Thursday in Malaysia on money laundering charges. Brought in by Malaysia’s Anti-Corruption Commission, Aziz stands accused of taking from 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), a sizeable investment fund set up by Najib Razak, his stepfather and the former Prime Minister of the country. He was released on bail and is expected to appear in court on Friday.

Aziz founded Red Granite Pictures with Joey MacFarland in 2010. While Martin Scorsese’s “The Wolf of Wall Street” is their most famous project, the company has also produced comedies like “Dumb and Dumber To” and “Daddy’s Home.” Most recently, it released the remake of “Papillon.”

The Anti-Corruption Commission is expected to accuse Red Granite of taking laundered funds from another company known as Good Star, which is associated with Jho Low. Low, a wanted fugitive in Malaysia, is accused of receiving funds from 1MDB and orchestrating a plan to take $4.5 billion dollars overall. Variety reports the Low received a thank you in the credits for “The Wolf of Wall Street.”

Red Granite forfeited $57 million in May, which was paid back to the Malaysian government in an attempt to recoup the damages done to 1MDB.

“Despite the settlement in the U.S. and the fact that alleged wrongdoings occurred entirely outside of Malaysia, the MACC decides to press charges after a whole year of leaving this case in cold storage. He is not a criminal,” Nooryana Najwa, Aziz’s sister, said in an Instagram post.