FBI RELEASES APPLICATION FOR CARTER PAGE FISA WARRANT

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has released the complete text of the 412 page Verified Petition that was filed to obtain a FISA warrant against Carter Page. Readers who wish to review the document may access it here.

While the document has been declassified, kindly note that a substantial portion has been redacted, but enough remains to detail the multiple elements of Russian intelligence activity that were alleged in support of the petition.

UBS CONSENT ORDER WITH OCC DETAILS AML COMPLIANCE DEFICIENCIES

The media has been covering the Consent Order, between UBS AG, both its Swiss headquarters, as well as its US branches in New York, Connecticut and Florida, and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, regarding its BSA/AML deficiencies; readers who wish to review the complete text of the 34-page order may access it here.

 

MALAYSIAN FRAUDSTER'S ST KITTS CBI PASSPORT DOES NOT SAVE HIM FROM ARREST IN CHINA

Jho Low, accused of diverting billions of dollars from Malaysia's sovereign wealth fund 1MDB, has been a fugitive on the run from his country's law enforcement agencies. International media from China is reporting that Chinese authorities arested Jho when he attempted to  enter the Peoples' Republic from Hiong Kong. I imagine he was quite surprised when taken into custody.

Jho was reportedly depending upon his Dt Kitts CBI passport to protect him from the law in his home country, and abroad, but apparently China disagreed. It detained Jho, when he attempted to further evade justice by entering China.  Some sources claim he was en route to St Kitts, from which he could not be extradited.

This is a testbook lesson in the reality that a CBI document is not the Golden Passport that its sellers claim it to be. Jho might not be extradited to face the music in Malaysia, for political reasons, but might now be doomed to spend a couple of decades behind bars in a nasty Chinese prison, trapped in a form of legal limbo which he cannot easily escape from.  

UNITED STATES OPPOSES RICHARD CHICHAKLI'S MOTION FOR EARLY TERMINATION OF SUPERVISED RELEASE

Viktor Bout's former partner, Richard Chichakli, has filed a Pro Se motion for early termination of his two year Supervised Release obligation, which was a part of his sentence. The US Attorney in New York has opposed it, stating that his conduct is not exceptional, and therefore early termination is not justified. Chichakli paid all the costs assessed against him, including the $70,000 restitution, and he has lived and worked without incident since his release in 2017.

What's wrong with this picture ? The purpose of Supervised Release is to monitor the post-incarceration conduct of a criminal defendant, to kep close tabs on him, and to prevent him from re-offending, as recidivism is a major problem in our criminal justice system. Chichakli, like most white-collar defendants, has served more than half of his Supervised Release, and as is customary, when the defendant is clean, the courts often terminate it early.

In this case, the interests of justice are not the motivation. It appears that the Department of Justice, not able to charge him with serious crimes, has made every aspect of his sanctions case as difficult as it could, from giving him "diesel therapy," where he was shipped all over the US, for no valid reason, to obviously interfering with his ability to prepare for trial, the ends of justice are not served. These were punitive actions, from any objective viewpoint.

Since he is a United States citizen, he cannot be deported; I am sure that the US Attorney's office in New York City would have loved to have kicked him out of his adopted country, but alas, they could not. So now, they must be satisfied with a cheap shot. Let us hope that the Court is objective regarding his motion.

EGYPT SEEKS TO GET ON THE CBI CASH COW BANDWAGON

A draft law pending in the Parliament of Egypt will, if it becomes law, allow foreign nationals to obtain Egyptian citizenship, in a move reported to have been made due to the country's large sovereign debt. An applicant, who will pay the equivalent of approximately $400,000, and resides in the country for five years, will receive citizenship, while his deposit goes into the country's national treasury. This legislation, which faces some opposition in the country, is also intended to invite foreign investment, which left when the Arab Spring began, to return, as it allows foreign investors the opportunity to reside there whole overseeing their holdings.

Inasmuch as Egyptian passports require visas to visit Europe, North America, and even the Middle East, they are not deemed to be desireable in the traditional CBI sense, but visa-free travel to the East Caribbean states who also sell CBI is strangely available, probably as an incentive to Egyptians to travel there and pick up a second passport.

If the bill becomes law, we shall report back with further details.

ST KITTS SOLD CBI PASSPORT TO BUYER FROM MALAYSIA, WHICH PROHIBITS DUAL CITIZENSHIP

East Asia media, which is extensively covering the billion dollar Malaysian 1MDB corruption scandal, continues to focus upon a major player in that case, Low Taek Jho a/k/a Jho Low, who remains a fugitive from justice, thanks in large part to his St Kitts CBI passport, which he reportedly relies upon, given that his Malaysian passport was cancelled by the authorities.

Jho is a Malaysian citizen, and Malaysian law, as the Immigration Director-General Datuk Seri Mustafar Ali has publicly stated, not only does not allow dual citizenship, it is an offense for a Malaysian nationals to have two passports. He further explained that, in Malaysia, dual citizenship is strictly prohibited.

As we have repeatedly explained, the international CBI consultancies that vend economic passports generally fail to cover any of the negative aspects of CBI passports; they rarely, if ever, dicsuss tax liability, and other legal restrictions that specific clients may find themselves in violation of, should they purchase those CBI passport the consultancies are selling. Their sales staff are not international lawyers, any in-house lawyers they have call themselves "legal experts" not attorneys, and are definitely not in any way qualified to give advice on the applicants' local legal issues, for they are not admitted to practice law there. Mainly, the CBI consultancies tell the clients only the favorable information.

Here, obviously, whichever CBI consultancy sold Jho his St Kitts CBI passport failed to research Malaysian law, to ascertain whether there are any legal impediments to Malaysian nationals buying CBI products. Therefore, his St Kitts passport is void, not voidable, under Malaysian law, and could subject Jho to arrest by any customs and immigration, ending his flight to escape justice.

It makes you wonder why intelligent, affluent applicants always fail to retain independent counsel to advise them on all the legal aspects of a potential CBI passport purchase. They are later very unhappy when they run afoul of the law and the CBI issuer revokes their passport. Perhaps if they had secured competent legal advice, the result might ahve been different.

MARYLAND DISBARS PROMINENT CRIMINAL DEFENSE LAWYER FOR MONEY LAUNDERING

The Court of Appeals of Maryland, the state's highest caurt, has disbarred* prominent  College Park attorney Walter Lloyd Blair, who served a lengthy sentence for money laundering, witness tampering, and ten other charges, which were affirmed on appeal. Blair filed an unsuccesful action against then-US Attorney Rod Rosenstein, whom he accused of being prejudiced against him, due to his Jamaican origin.

Blair on right, civil rights case co-counsel Johnnie Cochran on left.

 Blair, who was suspended in 2010 after his conviction, applied to be readmitted after his release in 2017. The high court denied his Petition for Reinstatement.
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*In the Matter of the Petition of Walter Lloyd Blair to the Bar of Maryland