Money, Movies and Malaysia: What Happens After Feds Seize Property?

A federal probe into billions of dollars siphoned away from a Malaysian government investment fund has exploded into what may wind up being one of the largest asset seizures in U.S. history.

It's not just the value of the property targeted by the Department of Justice that makes the case unusual. The more than $1 billion in allegedly misappropriated assets tied to the Malaysian Fund 1MDB fund and sought by prosecutors in a civil complaint encompasses physical objects, like mansions, a jet plane and art treasures such as Monet and Van Gogh paintings. But as the title of one of the lawsuits filed suggests (United States of America v. "The Wolf of Wall Street"), the government wants to seize intellectual property as well.

The Justice Department is claiming in a civil lawsuit that allegedly stolen 1MDB  funds helped finance the Martin Scorsese-directed film. Among the assets sought are properties belonging to the Hollywood company that produced it, Red Granite Pictures. The government wants to seize not just royalties and other revenue generated by the movie that flowed to the company but also copyright ownership.

So what happens to all that stuff?

The government is asking the court to put the assets under the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service. If it takes possession, the Marshals Service could then change entry locks on property and stow away precious items in a sealed container inside a secure vault under 24-hour surveillance.

The Justice Department hasn't brought criminal charges, but an indictment isn't required to seize assets under federal civil forfeiture laws. At this point, the government needs to show that it has probable cause to believe that the assets are fruits of a crime — in this case, an alleged conspiracy to "misappropriate and fraudulently divert billions of dollars" from the Malaysian 1MDB fund.

Owners of seized property can challenge a forfeiture action by filing an opposition claim and make the case to a court about why the assets should be returned. Generally, if the court rejects the claims and once appeals are exhausted, assets are forfeited and ownership is transferred to the government.

Whether it's real estate, wine or jewelry, typically the government then auctions off the property, contracting with a private auctioneer.  If the Justice Department prevails in the 1MDB forfeiture case, the government could likewise sell the rights to "The Wolf of Wall Street" through a competitive bidding process.

Typically, the proceeds of civil forfeiture are channeled back into law-enforcement agency budgets. In some cases, money is distributed back to victims as compensation.

The 1MDB case is more complicated. The forfeiture claims were brought by the Justice Department's "Kleptocracy Asset Recovery Initiative", a five-year-old program that seeks the recovery of plundered foreign government wealth.

Under the initiative, the Justice Department can negotiate a settlement that returns funds back to a home country, but with strings attached.

For example, in a recent "kleptocracy" case against the government of Kazakhstan, federal prosecutors brokered a settlement that required cash be directed to impoverished Kazakh families through a World-Bank monitored program.

Source: Money, Movies and Malaysia: What Happens After Feds Seize Property?