Malaysia's Attorney General Tommy Thomas will charge Richard Gnodde, CEO of Goldman Sachs International, Michael Sherwood, who co-held the role until three years ago, as well as 15 other current of ex-executives of the American investment bank, the prosecutor said on Friday.

«Custodial sentences and criminal fines will be sought against the accused…given the severity of the scheme to defraud and fraudulent misappropriation of billions in bond proceeds," Thomas said in a statement. A spokesman for Goldman termed the charges «misdirected,» and said it will defend itself and its employees «vigorously.»

Ex-Banker's Guilty Plea

The charges reach into the highest echelons of investment banking: Sherwood is a veteran British banker who left Goldman in 2015 and is reportedly poised to join the board of unicorn Revolut. Gnodde is a 32-year veteran of the U.S. investment bank who has spent a considerable portion of his career in Singapore, Japan, and Hong Kong.

The charges come against the backdrop of Malaysia's efforts to get as $7.5 billion in reparations Goldman for a series of bond deals involving 1MDB.  Nine months ago, Goldman's former top man in southeast Asia, Tim Leissner, pleaded guilty to U.S. charges of money laundering and corruption. He is widely believed to be cooperating with the U.S. prosecutors, including helping officials look at Deutsche Bank.

Swiss Wealth Client

U.S. prosecutors alleged that $4.5 billion was misappropriated from 1MDB between 2009 and 2014. A Malaysian government formed last year after the ouster of PM Najib Abdul Razak is pursuing the scandal with renewed vigor. Najib, his son, Riza Aziz, most recently a Hollywood film producer, and others have been charged in the graft scandal.

Fugitive financier Low Taek Jho, or Jho Low, is depicted by U.S. officials as the mastermind behind the scandal. Low, who has consistently denied wrongdoing and remains AWOL, was a client of several Swiss wealth managers including Falcon Private Bank and now-defunct BSI.