From the hijab to explicit videos: how the secret marriage of the King of Malaysia to a former Miss Moscow turned into a scandal

King Muhammad V of Malaysia secretly married a former Miss Moscow, 24 years his junior, in 2018. But shortly after their wedding, the young woman's scandalous past was exposed, revealing explicit images of her sexual encounters. This is the story of a royal scandal that led to his abdication and a highly publicized divorce.

In 2018, King Muhammad V of Malaysia, then 49 years old, married in complete secrecy in Moscow. His bride, who became his third wife, was the stunning Russian Oksana Voevodina, a 25-year-old former Miss Moscow. The couple had met a year and a half earlier through a mutual friend. The Sultan had confided in Oksana that women were only interested in him for his money and that having children was "the greatest dream of his life."

A major obstacle stood in the way of their love. As king, Muhammad V was not only the head of state of Malaysia, but also held a prominent religious position within this Southeast Asian Islamic monarchy. Oksana therefore had to convert to Islam, taking the religious name Rihana Oksana Petra. She deleted all photos from her time as a lingerie model and suddenly posted pious pictures of herself wearing a hijab on her social media.

The scandal

The newlyweds quickly fulfilled their desire for a child. After attending a fertility clinic together in Germany, the young queen became pregnant. Claiming to be suffering from pregnancy complications, she returned to Moscow for specialized medical care. But during her stay in Russia, the tide began to turn in Malaysia. Images of the secret wedding were leaked to the press, and citizens expressed their outrage. Cyber investigators then began digging into Oksana's past.

Compromising videos quickly surfaced. It was discovered that she had participated a few years earlier in a reality TV show similar to "Temptation Island." The footage showed her diving completely naked into a swimming pool and having sex on camera with another contestant. The affair caused an uproar in Malaysia and increased the pressure on the king.

Malaysia has a unique system of nine sultans, each ruling one of the country's nine states. In rotation, one of them becomes the nation's king for a five-year term. Muhammad, Sultan of Kelantan, ascended the throne in 2016 and was supposed to remain until 2021. Shortly after the scandal, he decided to abdicate, becoming the first Malaysian monarch to voluntarily relinquish the throne. While it was never officially confirmed that his secret marriage was the reason, the timing of his abdication left little room for doubt.

Acrimonious separation

On May 21, 2019, Oksana gave birth to a baby boy: Tengku Ismail Leon. From Moscow, she presented her son on social media as the heir to the Sultanate of Kelantan. But Muhammad V refused to acknowledge the child. He stated that there was “no objective proof” that he was the biological father, going so far as to declare, “Any Asian man could be the father.” He then unilaterally filed for divorce by pronouncing triple talaq, an Islamic procedure in which the husband simply repeats three times, “I divorce you.” The former Miss Moscow learned of the end of her marriage online.

Their separation was particularly acrimonious. Documents leaked to the press revealed an agreement proposed by the Sultan to his ex-wife. He stated he was prepared to create a fund of approximately €215,000 for the boy, subject to several strict conditions: the child had to be raised in strict accordance with Sunni Islam, the mother and son had to have no further contact with him, and she had to permanently delete all her social media accounts while maintaining absolute silence in the face of the press.

A new, complicated marriage

Oksana refused the proposal, demanding millions in alimony, before moving to London with her son. To this day, Muhammad V continues to deny his biological paternity. Last year, the Sultan married for the fourth time, this time to an American woman, in a ceremony in Oman. But once again, things didn't go as planned. The bride later claimed she thought it was only an engagement and hadn't realized she was entering into a legally binding marriage. After a miscarriage, their relationship began to crumble. According to her own statements, the Sultan then cut off all contact with his wife.