BVI Investigators Sue Swizz Beatz in Alleged $7.6B Swindle

Independent financial investigators in the British Virgin Islands filed suit against Swizz Beatz in an attempt to recover $7.3 million they claim the celebrity music producer and art collector accepted from international fugitive Jho Low — who authorities seek in an alleged $7.65 billion scam that ensnared a former Malaysian prime minister.

The suit, filed Oct. 2 in the Southern District of New York, where Beatz — aka Kasseem Dean — has his bank account, alleges Low and associate Eric Tan illegally funneled money from the Malaysian investment firm 1 Malaysia Development Berhad, known as 1MDB, to various shell companies. Two such companies were Affinity Equity International Partners Limited and Alsen Chance Holdings Limited, which existed only on paper in Tortola, according to court records. In 2010, Low began socializing with celebrities, throwing lavish parties, hosting luxury group vacations, and financing Hollywood films, the suit alleges. Some of Low’s new friends included Dean, better known by his professional name, Swizz Beatz, and Dean’s wife, the singer Alicia Keys.

From September 2012 to September 2014, Alsen Chance sent Dean and companies under his control eight transfers totaling $7.3 million without anything in return, according to court records. The first transfer, on Sept. 21, 2012, to Swizz Beatz Productions Inc., included the note “Alsen Chance investment in music production (Everyday is your Birthday).” Swizz Beatz published the song Everyday Birthday in November 2012.