DiCaprio
foundation would return gifts if from Malaysian fund in
probe
Send a link to a friend
[October 19, 2016]
NEW YORK (Reuters) -
Oscar-winner Leonardo DiCaprio's charitable foundation
would return gifts or donations made to him or his
ventures if they were found to have come from Malaysian
wealth fund 1MDB, which is being investigated on money
laundering allegations, his representatives said on
Tuesday.
|
In his first comment on the multinational probe into the
fund, DiCaprio said he was cooperating with U.S. authorities to
determine if money had come from questionable sources, according
to the statement.
In July a Hollywood production company was accused in a U.S.
civil lawsuit of using $100 million that prosecutors said had
been diverted from the 1MDB fund to finance DiCaprio's 2013 film
"The Wolf of Wall Street," in which he starred.
In a statement on Tuesday, DiCaprio's representatives said he
had first learned of the probe through press reports in July.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2016/Oct/19/images/ads/current/culligan_sda_daily_FESTIVALS_2016.png)
"He immediately had his representatives reach out to the
Department of Justice to determine whether he or his foundation,
the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation (LDF), ever received any gifts
or charitable donations directly or indirectly related to these
parties, and if so, to return those gifts or donations as soon
as possible," the statement said.
"All contact was initiated by Mr. DiCaprio and LDF," it said.
The production company, Red Granite Pictures, has said that to
its knowledge none of the money it received was illegitimate and
that it had done nothing wrong.
[to top of second column] |
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2016/Oct/19/images/ads/current/castlemanor_lda_HALLOWEEN_2016.png)
The Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation, set up in 1998, supports a range
of environmental projects.
In August, the Hollywood Reporter published a story alleging that
the actor's foundation had benefited to the tune of some $2 million
from cash and in-kind donations made by a Malaysian financier, who
was named in the U.S. lawsuit as being involved in the creation of
the 1MDB fund.
The actor, who won an Oscar in 2016 for his role in "The Revenant,"
is also a United Nations climate change "messenger of peace," but he
has come under pressure from some environmental activists to step
down from the role following the 1MDB scandal.
DiCaprio's representatives said in Tuesday's statement that he had
refrained from speaking about the matter until now "out of respect
for (the) ongoing investigation, which has touched many charities,
hospitals and individuals, who may have been unwitting recipients of
funds now in question."
(Reporting by Jill Serjeant)
[© 2016 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2016 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |