NEW YORK COURT CASE EXPOSES HOW ILLEGAL CARIBBEAN CBI PAYMENTS FROM A NON-EXISTENT BANK WERE FACILITATED BY SWITZERLAND



We are all familiar with "brass-plate" banks, those that have no brick-and-mortar physical location, and also virtual banks, which only exist online but are duly licensed, but what about so-called phantom banks, those that do not even have a charter, but are moving money in illicit international commerce ? Enter the " Bank of Dominica," which does not exist, in any legal form, in Dominica, in Switzerland, where it is transferring illicit capital, or anywhere in the world. How is it that Switzerland allows it to move millions of dollars ?

The bank's name came up recently, when an Italian American businessman, Paolo Zampoli, who holds a diplomatic passport from the Commonwealth of Dominica, one of the five East Caribbean states that sell Citizenship by Investment (CBI/CIP) programs, sued* Range Developments, a builder of CBI resorts, alleging that he was improperly denied a multi-million dollar finder's fee, due to him from the Cabrits Resort & Spa Kempinski Dominica. The Cabrits project was curiously built on national park land removed from park status. Did Zampoli facilitate that act we wonder ?



Zampoli alleges that Range completed, and opened, the project, without tendering payment to him of his fees, as required by a written agreement He states, in a sworn verified petition, that two Range officers, Mohammed Asaria, a Palestinian, and Kamal Shehada, a British national, received thirty million dollars each, from "a Bank of Dominica account in Geneva, Switzerland ."

 No such bank exists anywhere, and given the strict manner in which the Swiss Government severely restricts the use of the term "bank" to licensed financial institutions, how is it that such an unregistered and unlicensed entity was permitted to exist in Geneva, and to receive, and fund, illegal payments from Dominica's CBI program ? We note that Chinese purchasers of Cabrits are alleging that Range committed fraud, but this has not yet been confirmed.

The law in Dominica requires that CBI escrow deposits must be held by local banks, and all disbursements must have three signatures, none of which can be that of the prime minister. Both Swiss regulatory agencies, and whatever Swiss banks transferred the sixty million dollars to the UAE  officers of Range, should be investigated, to ascertain how a totally bogus "bank" was permitted to have accounts in local banks, as well as wire large amounts out of Switzerland. was FINMA asleep ? Which Swiss bank opened the accounts for a bogus bank ?



If you were wondering why the two $30m payments were illegal, Range Development sold 800 passports to investors, who paid Dominica $195m for real estate purchases, which is strange, because there were only 160 rooms sold, and even if the cost of constructing the hotel was double what is customary on the industry, say $44m, what happened to the other $150m ? Was it diverted into the Swiss bank accounts of corrupt senior Dominica officials ?

Dominica is presently in the middle of a crisis, after it was discovered that an estimated $1.2bn in CBI receipts is missing from the national treasury. The $60m represents an illegal diversion of Dominica treasury funds, and the transfers constitute money laundering.

Getting back to the ficticious "Bank of Dominica," we call upon FINMA, the Swiss financial markets regulatory authority, to open an investigation into the matter, and into the presence of illegal CBI funds, being CBI proceeds diverted into the hands of criminal conspirators engaged in CBI real estate construction projects. Perhaps they might want to speak to the Swiss bankers involved in this scandal, and close down all CBI accounts from the East Caribbean CBI states.

the relevant allegations from Zampoli's Petition appear below; you attention is directed to paragraph 14:

________________________________________________________________________
* Paolo Zampoli vs. Range Developments et al,  Index No. 156698/2019  (NY Sup Ct).

Tuesday, November 26, 2019

FIFTEEN MONTHS LATER, INDIA'S MOST WANTED IS STILL GIVEN REFUGE IN ANTIGUA

 

The extradition, after ten years, of Antigua's former banking regulator, Leroy King, has again focused attention upon Mehmet Choksi, India's Most Wanted fugitive, who has been living a life of luxury in Antigua the past fifteen months, evading justice at home due to his Antigua CBI passport and citizenship. His attorney have filed multiple times in the local court system, thus far successfully evading extradition, and allowing him to cheat justice in India. His extended presence in Antigua reminds is that the Rule of Law there is often trumped by political influence, especially if the individual is affluent.

The Choksi case has now generated renewed attention, due to the fact that it has been belatedly disclosed that India and Antigua signed a treaty in 2000 that provides for extradition if their nationals. Antigua's government had thus far asserted that no such treaty right existed, which gave attorneys for Choksi free reign to attack India's right to remove an Antiguan national, and to interpose a number of defenses strictly for dilatory purposes.

Whether Choksi will also enjoy a decade of freedom in Antigua before he faces Indian justice we cannot say, but we will be monitoring the situation, as it directly affects Country Risk.




Sunday, November 24, 2019

CONVICTION OF ATTORNEY WHO SOUGHT TO LAUNDER DRUG PROFITS FROM WATCHING "BREAKING BAD" AFFIRMED ON APPEAL



Sometimes, life imitates art; the conviction of an Ohio attorney who took money from a confidential informant, and planned to launder what he believed to be drug profits, using a technique he saw on the television program "Breaking Bad," was affirmed on appeal. Cleveland lawyer Matthew King, who sought to imitate television character Saul Goodman, and set up a sham corporation to launder the proceeds of crime, was convicted of three counts of money laundering and thereafter took an appeal to the Sixth Circuit.

The attorney never formed the front corporation, and later returned all the money to the CI. On appeal, the Court dismissed his legal arguments. We find the case of topical interest due to the blunt fact that the public, watching what are depicted as successful money laundering strategies and tactics, should be aware of the fact that, if a money laundering technique appears in the media, law enforcement certainly is aware of its use and any attempt to employ it in real life is not only illegal, it will most likely be discovered, and criminal prosecution result.

Readers who wish to review the complete text of the seven page Opinion in  USA vs. Matthew J King may access it here. 

Saturday, November 23, 2019

LACK OF GOVERNMENT ACTION AGAINST GRENADA SUSTAINABLE AQUACULTURE FRAUDSTERS WILL AFFECT FUTURE CBI BUSINESS



The Government of Grenada has reportedly been conducting an investigation of the GSA scandal for the past six months, but there is no evidence that anything has been done other than hold a press conference announcing the investigation. Meanwhile, the organizers of the scam have pocketed at least eighteen million US Dollars from foreign investors, burned their partners, suppliers and tradesmen who they contracted with to create and open the facility, and fled the scene, in a classic Caribbean "Take the Money and Run" scenario that has been repeated in Grenada, without any criminal consequences.

GSA appears to be no different from other Grenadian scandals, but the Citizenship by Investment (CBI) passport and citizenship program, which approved GSA within the CBI framework, is currently under attack. GSA victims and creditors have blamed government for failure to conduct effective Due Diligence upon the program, which had no actual physical address, nor any record of prior experience in aquaculture projects. It remains an open question whether there is legal liability for gross negligence, though sovereign immunity law may apply. In that event, are senior official in
Grenada personally liable ?

PM Keith Mitchell

Prime Minister Keith Mitchell, obviously you are not going to find GSA manager Soren Dawody, an Iraqi national carrying a Swedish passport, in Grenada, or any of his partners, but charging them with a crime is the least government can do it demonstrate its resolve in the matter. To do anything less will drive prospective CBI applicants to other jurisdictions, thereby reducing much needed income for the government budget. Grenada's inaction will result in CBI business going elsewhere. Why not choose to do the right thing, and hold fraudsters accountable. Mr. Mitchell ?


 

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

UK JUDGE PERMITS APPEAL TO HIGH COURT OF DECISION APPROVING LAW ENFORCEMENT USE OF FACIAL RECOGNITION TECHNOLOGY



A Justice of the Court of Appeal in the United Kingdom has permitted an appeal from the decision of the High Court of Justice, Queen's Bench Division, that held police use of Automatic Facial Recognition Technology had a lawful basis, and was consistent with the requirements of the Human Rights Act and data protection legislation.

The plaintiff, a human rights activist, filed the case against the South Wales Police, who allegedly violated his rights when it scanned hi s face with an Automatic Facial Recognition (AFR) camera. readers who are not familiar with this landmark decision are directed to prior articles on this blog, especially the lead article, High Court of Justice approves Law Enforcement Use of Facial Recognition Technology, which was published September 8, 2019. Please note that the formal name of the Court is "Her Majesty's Court of Appeal in England."



READ DEFENSE INTELLIGENCE AGENCY WHITE PAPER ON IRAN'S MILITARY POWER



Readers who are compliance officers charged with assessing Country Risk on those nations located in the Middle East may want to read the recent DIA White Paper on Iran's military power. You may access the complete text of the 130-page document here.

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

COMMISSION NATIONALE INFORMATIQUE ET DE LIBERTES (CNIL) ISSUES GUIDANCE ON USE OF FACIAL RECOGNITION SOFTWARE

 
France's National Commission on Computing & Liberties (CNIL), its personal data watchdog, has issued guidance on the appropriate use of biometric facial recognition software technology. Readers who are deploying facial recognition software for compliance or law enforcement purposes are advised to consult these guidelines.

France is presently far ahead of the United States in this field, and its actions should be required reading for any user of facial recognition technology for the image identification of individuals, whether it be to confirm client identity in banking customer due diligence, or to identify unknown subjects in a law enforcement investigation.



Readers who wish to review the guidance may access the complete text of the document Reconnaissance Faciale: Pour un Debat รก la Hauteur des Enjeux here.






GRENADA GSA FRAUDSTERS ABANDONED THEIR CLIENTS LONG BEFORE THE GOVERNMENT SHUT DOWN THE PROGRAM



If you were wondering precisely when the operators of Grenada's failed Sustainable Aquaculture program deserted their clients, it was long before the Government of Grenada suspended the eligibility of GSA for participation in the CBI program.

First, look at the GSA website:

(1) The last entry was April 25, 2017.
(2) The Facebook page was last updated on November 23, 2017.
(3) The Twitter page was last posted on March 14, 2017.

Next, look at Soren Dawody's immigration consultants page, Akros & Partners/Akros Capital.

(1) Last Facebook posting was August 20, 2018.
(2) Last Twitter posting was the same date.

 GSA did not have a  brick-and-mortar office, either in Canada, or in the UAE. All of them were mail drops, executive centers or hotel rooms which were glorified mailboxes. The question presents itself, why did the Government of Grenada not suspend the program earlier ? It was finally suspended through an official announcement date October 18, 2018. if the Government had acted earlier, perhaps some of the late-arriving investors would not have become victims.

UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI PROFESSOR, EXPERT ON DRUG TRAFFICKING, CHARGED WITH MONEY LAUNDERING IN NEW YORK



Professor Bruce Bagley, a noted authority on drug trafficking in the Americas, has been charged with money laundering in Federal Court in New York. Bagley, who often appears as an expert witness in criminal trials in Miami, faces two counts of money laundering and one count of money laundering conspiracy.

According to government press releases, the defendant set up a consulting business in Florida, which received millions of dollars from Switzerland and the United Arab Emirates, which were allegedly the proceeds of theft and embezzlement from Venezuelan government sources. He forwarded the money on, using cashier's checks, retaining a ten per cent commission for himself.



An academic, and not an attorney, his arrest was met with disbelief among the university's staff. His wife, Annette, appears to have also been involved to some extent. Each of the three counts has a maximum prison sentence of twenty years.

Readers who wish to read the Indictment may access the complete text here.

VIKTOR BOUT SEEKS TO VACATE HIS CONVICTION AND OBTAIN A NEW TRIAL


Viktor Bout, the former Soviet Air Force officer turned arms trafficker, has filed a Motion to Vacate Judgment of Conviction, and for an Order for Retrial, Pursuant to 28 USC §2255, by a person in Federal Custody. Having been convicted in District Court of four counts, Bout's appeal to the Second Circuit was denied, and the US Supreme Court denied Certiorari. He is serving his sentence of 300 months as USP Marion, in a unit designed for terrorists where contact with the outside world

The issues he has presented in his motion:

(1) Ineffective assistance of counsel, pursuant to the Sixth Amendment, stemming from a conflict of interest that hampered the defense attorney. He alleges his defense counsel would not receive the full attorneys' fee unless the defendant was convicted, and the Court and the US Attorney were implicated, and that prejudice was proven.

(2) Defense counsel concealed what Bout called "Brady material" from the jury, which would tend to prove his innocence, and agreed to not call a law enforcement witness whose testimony would damage the Government's case.

(3) There is Newly-Discovered Evidence in the case.




Any reader who requires a copy of the 36-page Motion, which contains exhibits, will kindly contact me at; miamicompliance@gmail.com and supply their email address.






READ REPORT TO US CONGRESS "HAS PRESIDENT TRUMP RECEIVED CRIMINAL PROCEEDS WHILE SERVING AS PRESIDENT ?"



Longtime readers of this blog are familiar with the roles that a number of individuals, including Gary James Lundgren, David Murcia Guzmรกn, Roger Khafif, Alexandre Ventura Nogueira and Ricardo Martinelli, allegedly played in money laundering in Panama's Trump Ocean Club. A detailed Memorandum, prepared by Congressional Counsel, and transmitted to the House of Representatives on April 30, 2019, and released at that time, is an outstanding resource on the subject.

Therefore, since the Memorandum, which cites only to public sources, and is obviously unclassified, should be reviewed by all who are interested in the ongoing Congressional Impeachment hearings, we are linking to it in this article. Entitled Has President Trump Received Criminal Proceeds While Serving as President ?, we believe it to be required reading for all Americans.

You may access the complete text of the 21-page Memorandum here.

COMPLIANCE EXCEDRIN HEADACHE NUMBER ONE: VENEZUELA ADOPTS THE US DOLLAR AS ITS CURRENCY



The Government of Venezuela, its economy, as well as its national currency, the Bolivar, in tatters, has taken the remedial step of adopting the US Dollar as currency of the realm. This action will surely prove to be a nightmare for US banks, especially its compliance officers,  for the wide range of US OFAC sanctions in place could mean even more front men for sanctioned entities will be seeking access to the American financial structure, to acquire dollars.

The move to the US Dollar may also spawn a new cottage industry in bulk cash smuggling into Venezuela. from Florida, Texas, and Puerto Rico, and compliance officers may wish to alert their teller staff and customer relations specialists about possible order for cash from bank clients who have never made such requests before.

Finally, banks in the republic of Panama, which are notorious for their "Don't ask, Don't tell" attitude regarding money laundering, may be asking their American correspondents for large cash shipments, to serve the Government of Venezuela, and such requests should be thoroughly checked before funds are issued.

DOMINICA DIPLOMATIC PASSPORT HOLDER SENTENCED TO 20 YEARS IN PRISON AND $1.3bn FINE

Monfared on trial in Iran.


If you were wondering about the fate of Alireza Ziba Halat Monfared, after we published several photographs taken at his recent trial in Iran, the judgment has now been made public. He was sentenced to twenty (20) years in prison, and comply with a Restitution order in the amount of USD$1.3bn. Monfared, together with his co-defendant Babak Zanjani, and others, sold Iranian oil, in violation of international and US sanctions, stockpiled and stored oil stores, laundered the proceeds of those crimes, and sold off the tankers. The defendants, stole at least $3bn of the illegal Iranian oil profits for their own use.

Not to be forgotten is the fact that Monfared bought a diplomatic passport from officials in the Commonwealth of Dominica, as well as CBI passports for his family, notwithstanding that he was a well-known sanctions evader and money launderer. He used his nonfunctional "diplomat" status to avoid arrest in Malaysia for fraud and grand theft, and the fact that a known sanctions evader was sold a diplomatic passport, in violation of several provisions of the Vienna Convention, confirmed that Due Diligence was not performed on his application by Dominica's officials, in advance of his acquisition of the passports.

The Monfared scandal exposed Dominica's dodgy CBI, and diplomatic, passport sales industry, which has thrived notwithstanding the country's bleak post-Apocalypse economy, demonstrating that government cash flow from these programs has not trickled down to those in need. Additionally, evidence confirms that Monfared paid six figure bribes to CBI officials, and bought automobiles and trucks for other individuals in local government. He is the Poster Boy for all that is evil concerning Dominica's CBI program, which allows white collar criminals to hide their true identity and nationality behind a passport that gives the holder visa-free entry to the European Union Schengen Zone.   

Wednesday, November 13, 2019

IS JAZAER DAWODY, CTO AT GRENADA GSA PROJECT PERSONALLY LIABLE FOR THE $18m FRAUD ?

JAZAER DAWODY

Some of the victims of the Grenada Sustainable Aquaculture scam have identified Jazaer Dawody, the Chief Technology Officer of the failed project, which was never built, notwithstanding that it received a reported eighteen million dollars. The CTO is the mother of project manager Soren Dawody.

Jazaer is no technology officer; her degree is in the field of Chemistry, and we cannot find any reference to any training or education in aquaculture; she was obviously part of the fraud. She resigned her office at GSA in 2018 when Grenada dropped the project from the government's approved list for CBI investments, but remained on at Soret's UK front company until a few months ago. Her personal liability to investors is currently at issue.

She reportedly has assets in Dubai, UAE; Regarding civil or criminal charges threatened or filed against her or others there, where GSA maintained an office, contact me at: miamicompliance@gmail.com


MOSSACK FONSECA ATTORNEY, WANTED IN US, DECLINES TO APPEAR IN COURT




This is Ramses Genaro Owens Saad, the only former Mossack Fonseca attorney facing Federal criminal charges in the United States. Specifically, the indictment pending against him alleges:

(1) Money Laundering.
(2) Conspiracy to Defraud the United States (5 Counts).
(3) Wire Fraud.
(4) Tax Evasion.



He has not presented himself to the Court in the Southern District of New York, and the US Attorney has not only declared him a Fugitive from Justice, it has asserted that he cannot appear, through counsel, and defend himself. The prosecutors are relying upon the fugitive Entitlement Doctrine, which forbids absent defendants from participating in their case.

Owens Saad alleges that he is prohibited from traveling to the United States from Panama, due to restrictions imposed upon him, due to pending criminal charges in Panama. The US Attorney's Office has stated that Owens has failed to cooperate with it, to obtain travel permission. Given the corrupt nature of the Panamanian court system (no Mossack Fonseca attorney has ever been convicted of any crime in Panama, notwithstanding the massive global scandal), and the distinct possibility that Owens has engineered his own alleged inability to leave Panama, to evade American justice, it is doubtful that he will ever see the inside of that US courtroom in new York, where his co-defendants are facing the consequences of their alleged criminal acts.

Is the Panamanian court system really protecting attorney Owens Saad from being tried in the US for criminal acts committed while he was at Mossack Fonseca ? If he never goes to trial in Panama on the alleged charges, you have your answer.

ANTIGUA'S FINANCIAL REGULATOR LEROY KING FINALLY FACES AMERICAN JUSTICE IN HOUSTON


Leroy King, the corrupt former head of Antigua's Financial Services Regulatory Commission, has been, after ten years, successfully extradited to face criminal charges in the Stanford International Bank/Allen Stanford $7bn Ponzi scheme scandal. King had his First Appearance before a Federal Magistrate in Houston, Texas this week. He is the last defendant in a case which saw Allen Stanford sent to Federal Prison for 110 years, for operating an offshore bank in Antigua that promised large returns on investment in certificates of deposit, but which was a naked Ponzi scheme that defrauded thousands.

King is looking at over 20 counts, including money laundering conspiracy, and obstruction of an SEC investigation; if convicted, he could spend the rest of his life in prison. Sources in Antigua claims he is very ill with cancer, but this has not been confirmed, The decade-long delay in extraditing him to the US  resulted in a major increase in how compliance officers viewed the country, and a significant increase in Country Risk levels, as the delays were connected with a decline in the country's adherence to the Rule of Law in its co

urt system. 

GRENADA GSA FRAUDSTERS DECEIVED INVESTORS ABOUT THEIR AQUACULTURE EXPERIENCE



Soren Dawody, the principal owner of Grenada Sustainable Aquaculture Ltd., misrepresented to the project's investors that his staff had "over 150 years" of management experience, and "more than 275 years of combined experience, " which led investors to believe that GSA had Aquaculture experts on hand. 

Outside of the well-prepared, and profusely-illustrated website, GSA had no form or substance; It had no built-out construction site. It was basically a sales proposal, seeking financing for a pipe dream, sweetened by the promise of an accompanying CBI passport from Grenada. Dawody had to initially raise $20m, and then secure a similar amount of OPIC financing, which apparently never materialized, Unfortunately, Dawody chose to keep the $18m in funding, and slink away, never to be seen again at the proposed sites in Grenada.

 Soren contemplated perpetrating this scam elsewhere, outside of Grenada and Antigua & Barbuda.  cannot say, but we wonder what Mr. Dawody has been doing since Grenada shut down his GSA project as an approved CBI venture. Will we find other Dawody-operated sustainable aquaculture proposals elsewhere, that end up at failed  operations with unhappy victims ?






Monday, November 11, 2019

CONTRACTORS AND EXPERTS SEEK PAYMENT IN GRENADA GSA SCANDAL FROM GOVERNMENT



Several of the GSA contractors, subject matter experts and consultants have sent demand letters to the Government of Grenada, seeking payment for the fees and costs owed to them by  Grenada Sustainable Aquaculture Ltd, which took in a reported USD$18m, and, outside of primitive groundbreaking, failed to construct the aquaculture shrimp and fish pens and ponds.

The arguments they make is that Government failed to conduct due diligence upon GSA and its principal officer, Soren Dawody, because if they did, it would have come out that it had no experience in the industry, and that there was zero supervision of both escrow deposits, which were mysteriously diverted from Grenada, to the UAE & Singapore. These are serious issues, and if there is any truth in them, a case can certainly be made for negligence, giving rise to liability.

Where these civil suits might be brought has not yet been discussed, and whether there is any sovereign immunity under Grenadian, or international, law, that might bar recovery, is an important issue that requires prior adjudication. Given that the Government shut down the GSA program last year, and did not initiate an official investigation, there are other issues also that require rulings.




  

ALICEM - DECRET No 2019-452 DE 13 MAI 2019 AUTHORISANT LA CREATION D'UN IDENTIFICATION ELECTRONIQUE DEMONNE E AUTHENTIFICATION EN LIGNE CERTIFIEE SUR MOBILE


On the subject of facial recognition software technology, readers who wish to review the complete text of the French law concerning the implementation of ALICEM,  the mass-usage facial recognition ID program, providing a secure digital identity, may access it here. 


Sunday, November 10, 2019

DOMINICA'S PARTY IN POWER DROPPING MILLIONS TO BUY UPCOMING NATIONAL ELECTION


The Commonwealth of Dominica will be holding National Elections on December 6th, and the incumbent Labour Party is spending millions of (US) Dollars to insure that it remains in power. In a display of utter arrogance, Labour published its Campaign Budget past year, and there are all indications that it is currently spending up to the limits specified, if not more, on what is, frankly, the bold purchase of votes.




A nonstop party atmosphere is generated that is calculated to entertain, intoxicate, and instill absolute loyalty among the voters,many of whom suffered major losses in the last hurricane, and who will welcome any interruption in their current situation.


 


Please take the time to review the figures; Labour is buying votes of a thousand or more expats by flying them in for what amounts to a homecoming and visit with family; the voting is cleverly a small. but necessary, component of their trip. While they are in Dominica, their needs will be attended to, courtesy Labour. Huge all-you-can-eat & drink events, open payments to voters, temporary busy-work employment, and many other tricks that place US Dollars in the pockets of unemployed (and often intoxicated) voters, all add up to a fixed, and not free and fair, election.




ARE YOUR BANK CLIENTS SELLING EQUIPMENT TO THE MIDDLE EAST GETTING END USER CERTIFICATES ?



If you don't have bank clients in the aviation industry, you probably missed the recent OFAC Advisory, Deceptive Practices by Iran with respect to the Civil Aviation Industry. That document showed the extent to which Iran has accessed prohibited US aviation technology and equipment, through third countries. No matter what your clients' field or industry, they must be on the alert for similar Iranian tactics, involving their products and services.

 For that reason, obtaining End User Certificates should never be an option,but a mandatory component of all sales to the Middle East, as well as Sub-Saharan Africa. OFAC will certainly come knocking, and your clients had better have an effective AML/CFT compliance program, as well as End User Certificates on file. It is suggested that they be signed by two senior officers of your clients' client, have the corporate seal, and be notarized, to verify that it is the act and deed of the recipient company.

Readers who wish to review the OFAC Advisory may access the complete text of the 8-page document here.   

TWO IRANIANS LIVING IN USA PLEAD GUILTY TO SPYING ON MEK MEMBERS



Two Iranian nationals residing in the United States have entered guilty plead in US District Court in Washington, DC, to a number of charges involving illegal surveillance upon Americans as illegal agents of the Government of Iran. The defendants are Ahmadreza Mohammadi-Doostdar, a dual citizen, and Majid Ghorbani, a legal resident.

The charges to which guilty pleas were entered:
(1) Acting as an Agent of the Government of Iran, without notifying the Attorney General.
(2) Conspiracy against the United States, a violation of 18 USC §371.
(3) Violating the IEEPA. (50 USC§1705).
(4) Violating ITAR. (31 CFR Part 560).

The defendants were collecting information on, and photographing, members of the Iranian opposition group, Mujahedin-e Khalq, better known as the MEK. One defendant reportedly monitored a Jewish Center in California. Trips to Iran, in connection with their illegal surveillance activities, were mentioned by the US Attorney (DDC) in an official press release. 

 They face sentences of up to twenty years in Federal Prison.

Friday, November 8, 2019

AFTER A DECADE OF DELAYS BY ANTIGUA, LEROY KING IS FINALLY EXTRADITED TO THE UNITED STATES TO FACE THE MUSIC IN $7bn STANFORD BANK SCANDAL



The last significant fugitive from justice in the seven billion dollar Stanford International Bank Ponzi scheme, Antigua's former banking regulator Leroy King has, at long last, been extradited to face multiple charges in the United States. King was observed, in the custody of the US Marshals Service, boarding an American Airlines jet, bound for the US.

King, whose misconduct prevented US regulators and law law enforcement from obtaining evidence for years, in their investigation of Allen Stanford's massive Ponzi scheme, was able to defer his 2009 extradition order for more than a decade. There's plenty of blame to go around; judges who sat on the case for years, then passed it along to another judge, courts that allowed King's attorneys to file a long string of "appeals" that he was not entitled to as a matter of law, and senior Antigua officials, who allowed the legal charade to continue. The King case caused a rift in what were previously good relations between Antigua and the United States.

Local Antiguan sources claim that King is terminally ill with cancer, but whether he is too ill to be tried at this time is not known. He does have first-hand knowledge of systemic corruption in Antigua during the Stanford era, which could result in additional indictments of former or present officials in the Government of Antigua, at the highest level, but it is questionable that he will ever testify.