A CLASS ACTION SUIT TO BE FILED AGAINST ASIAN AND MIDDLE EASTERN BANKS IN THE BILLION DOLLAR CBI/CIP FRAUD SCANDAL

                         

The RICO lawsuit, alleging fraud, money laundering and corruption on a grand scale in the CBI programs of St. Kitts and St. Lucia has created a shock wave in most of the East Caribbean states that offer CBI/CIP citizenship & passport programs. The recognition of the loss of $3.5bn in needed revenue, as well as illegal discounted contracts, has galvanized not only the citizens of Saint Kitts and Saint Lucia, whose economic passport programs are named in the litigation, but those of Dominica and Grenada as well, to seek to be added to the roll of plaintiffs in a potential Class Action lawsuit, because it appears that programs in all the East Caribbean states were victims of illegal discounting of the cost of Citizenship by Investment. Over one thousand EC citizens have written to MSR Media, the lead plaintiff in the RICO case, inquiring about the details in a future Class Action proceeding, and requesting to participate as party plaintiffs. 

The prospect of filing such a case, which is currently under examination by lawyers in the United States who are experienced in Class Action litigation, appears to be assured, judging by the information available from our sources close to MSR leadership. Potential defendants include, but are presently not limited to, all the financial institutions in the United States, the Caribbean, Asia, and the Middle East that accepted CBI application deposits without confirming that they were for the legal price, and were therefore complicit in the fraud, as well as the agents, vendors, consultancies and promoters who advertised, marketed and sold the illegally-discounted citizenships, all of which were paid in US Dollars. 

Banks in Hong Kong, Macau, Dubai, Jordan and Abu Dhabi have been mentioned. It is claimed that there was a total lack of compliance by banks in those countries, as the legal price of the citizenship was not paid; in most cases the funds transited through the correspondent accounts of  Bank of America. Corrupt government officials that facilitated the widespread fraud across the industry are also said to be likely to be named as defendants.

We have confirmed that law firms in the United States that have experience in successfully bringing large Class Action cases have been consulted by MSR, and have rendered a favorable opinion on the outcome of such litigation. They are reportedly focusing on what they see as the primary liability of the financial institutions that accepted the discounted payments, due to the fact that they allegedly failed to conduct effective due diligence on the circumstances of the applicants' purchases, which provided for deeply discounted prices, far below the legal minimums required by the laws that created the schemes. 

The goal of the region's CBI programs, which is to help local government meet budgetary goals, provide needed services, and raise the quality of life for all citizens, has been handicapped by the illegal acts of those who chose to break the laws that govern these programs, to the damage and detriment of those who they were designed to aid, and all those who were responsible for the illegal discounting must be held accountable for their conduct; a Class Action suit appears to provide a suitable remedy, and the victims demand justice. 

Last night, during an interview on Saint Lucia television, Philippe Martinez of MSR media announced that the Class Action will move forward, in the name of all the ordinary citizens of the East Caribbean states, who will be the plaintiffs.