INTERVIEW | Bradley Hope, co-author of the book Billion Dollar Whale, has urged local journalists, and Malaysians in general, to pursue the truth, despite attempts to hide huge scandals behind tonnes of money. 

In an interview with Malaysiakini, Hope said one can overcome efforts by perpetrators to hide such scandals when stories are built on facts. 

"People will spend millions of dollars to hide the truth, but you can overcome those efforts if you build a story fact by fact.

"Always keep chasing the truth and don't assume anything, or let any bias get in the way of your pursuit of it. Truth is the most precious thing in the world," Hope said.

The 400-page book was authored by two Wall Street Journal (WSJ) journalists - Hope and Tom Wright.

It covers stories related to state investment fund 1MDB.

The book was officially launched in Manhattan, New York last week, and the authors had also indicated that the book will also be translated into Bahasa Malaysia.

Hope recalled how he and co-author Tom Wright (right in photo) had no plans to write a book when they started covering the 1MDB scandal.

"That (writing of the book) came later. We both took off for about four months last summer to write the book and further our research.

"1MDB was also our job at the newspaper so we really feel like we've been working on it for more than three years," he added.

Wright and Hope had covered the 1MDB scandal for the WSJ since the issue first made headlines about three years ago, including the US$681 million (RM2.6 billion) found in the account of former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak.

Picking up the red flags on 1MDB

How did it all start for Wright and Hope on 1MDB?

Hope said that there were a lot of failed efforts, but that the pair persisted nonetheless. The two are glad to see the United States Department of Justice's (DOJ) civil suit - which has sought to recover funds misappropriated from 1MDB - validate all their work, and reveal "new parts" of the scandal they had not known about.

Hope recalls that their coverage began mostly as a financial report, when investment bank Goldman Sachs was earning large profits on bonds issued by 1MDB.

The huge profits from the bonds caught the eye of the reporters.

"Not long after, there were a few great pieces of journalism in the Sarawak Report and New York Times that suggested something really big was behind all of this.

"Tom's first big story was about a scandal that has almost faded from memory, but it is actually a really big deal - it turned out that 1MDB had bought powerplants from (Malaysian businessperson) Ananda Krishnan at inflated prices and that Ananda donated part of that overpayment to charities associated with 1MDB."

It was clearly a mechanism set up to help 1MDB act like a political slush fund, he said.

The revelation about RM2.6 billion in Najib's (photo) personal bank account changed everything and made the story a major priority for them.

Hope also said that they had a lot of success with the Abu Dhabi part of the scandal.

"Even then, there was an archipelago of scandals that felt connected but there was no proof. Over the next year, we combed through documents, pressured sources and slowly connected all the dots.

"At the WSJ, we are very lucky to work with so many talented colleagues with different talents and expertise.

"Our excellent art reporter Kelly Crow helped us understand Jho's spending spree in the art world. Justin Baer, who covered Goldman Sachs at the time, helped us figure out all the red flags the bank missed in helping 1MDB raise money," Hope said, explaining what went on behind the scenes while writing the book. 

"Of course, we also religiously read the coverage in the Malaysian press as well, including Malaysiakini and The Edge.

"I can't remember a day when I haven't searched for '1MDB' to see any news the first thing when I woke up," Hope added.

Although Billion Dollar Whale is a bestseller in the US, legal threats from fugitive businessperson Low Taek Jho (Jho Low), who is named as the mastermind behind the scandal, have made publishers in the UK get cold feet about proceeding with the book's publication. 

According to Hope, laws in the UK favour parties who feel defamed, over the role of free press in the society. Nevertheless, he hopes to see the book published there, one day. 

To a question if Hollywood plans to adapt the book into a film, Hope said: "No comments, but hope to have news on that front, soon. Stay tuned."