Tuesday, June 11, 2019
INDIA'S FINANCE MINISTER SLAMS ANTIGUA'S CBI PROGRAM FOR HELPING OFFENDERS ESCAPE JUSTICE
The Government of India has come down hard on CBI jurisdictions, such as Antigua, who "allow economic offenders to use investment-type schemes to obtain residence or citizenship to escape from [the] legal consequences"of their crimes. Nirmala Sitharaman, the Minister of Finance of India, speaking at the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Conference in Japan, called upon nations to strongly deal with such practices," implying that punitive international action is warranted. India is extremely displeased with Antigua for not speedily extraditing Choksi, after it sold this known fraudster an Antiguan passport.
Antigua & Barbuda, which operates a Citiizenship by Investment (CBI/CIP) program that sold a passport & citizenship to India's most wanted white collar fugitive, Mehul Choksi, has refused to extradite him to face a criminal trial in India, relying upon dilatory procedural legal delays that have allowed criminals to cheat justice abroad. The case has resulted in Antigua sustaining serious reputational damage in North America and the European Union, due to increasing distrust of the country's court system. If a country's court system is rigged, foreign investors have no place to settle legitimate disputes, and as a result they steer clear of that country.
The Leroy King case, in which the former chief Antiguan financial regulator has evaded extradition to the US for more than a decade, is a prime example of the Antiguan judiciary's corrupt conduct, when it comes to intentional disregard of the Rule of Law, based upon the wishes of senior political leadership. If Chokli is not extradited, Antigua will most likely be elevated to High Risk status by bank compliance officer charged with the calculation of Country Risk, which may cause major economic damage.
Monday, June 10, 2019
JARED KUSHNER REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT FIRM MOVED FOREIGN CAPITAL THROUGH THE CAYMAN ISLANDS
CADRE, a real estate investment firm co-founded by Jared Kushner, (who still owns 25%), accepted $90m in foreign funding, placed through an opaque offshore vehicle in the Cayman Islands, and coming in from yet another tax haven, effectively concealing the identities of the investors. the largest investors are said to include citizens of Saudi Arabia. What's wrong with this picture ?
Kushner's stock in Cadre is said to be currently worth $50m; Who are the principal foreign investors in the company ? This appears to be a textbook example of Conflict of Interest, suitable for a law school casebook. Unfortunately, it is true.
HEARING OF DOMINICA OPPOSITION LEADERS WILL BE CLOSED TO THE PRESS AND PUBLIC
In yet another sign that basic Constitutional freedoms have been rescinded by the Skerrit government in the Commonwealth of Dominica, the upcoming hearing on the Incitement case against senior Opposition leaders is closed to the press and the public, by order of Magistrate Asquith Riviere. The defendants are former Prime Minister Edison James, Senator Dr. Thomson Fontaine, and Opposition leader Lennox Linton.
The case, which most legal observers agree was filed for purely political reasons, and is totally devoid of legal merit, is part of a grand scheme to discredit the Opposition, and possibly see them imprisoned, in advance of the next national elections. The Freedom to Assemble is one of the basic Constitutional freedoms; the Opposition leaders are targeted for inciting and provoking unlawful behavior at an organized, peaceful protest; The charge is, to be blunt, bogus.
There is no security or other issue present that would justify closing the courtroom, and the magistrate's action has essentially closed the proceedings to public and media scrutiny, much as is the case in non-democratic states. especially in the Peoples' Republic of China, whose representatives have been advising Dominica's Prime Minister Skerrit since it built a huge embassy in the country.
English Common Law, which forms the historical basis for Dominica's legal structure, requires that all trials be open to the public. It is clearly an abuse of discretion for the magistrate to close the proceedings.
Defense counsel has complained to the Court that Senior Counsel Israel Kahn, who is prosecuting the action on behalf of the Government of Dominica, has not only failed to deliver required discovery documents, but that this failure has interfered with the planned cross-examination of the 64 witnesses the Government has listed for trial. The next hearing is scheduled for tomorrow, June 11, 2019.
Sunday, June 9, 2019
UK SEIZED THREE TONNES OF EXPLOSIVES FROM HEZBOLLAH NEAR LONDON
British media is abuzz with news of a terrorist incident, apparently now declassified, regarding the seizure of three metric tonnes of ammonium nitrate, an explosive component, in 2015, from Hezbollah agents operating from a secret bomb factory located near London. The material, which was packed in thousands of disposable ice packs, was destined for attacks which were planned against targets said to be in Thailand, New York, London & Cyprus. 8.2 tonnes were found in Cyprus, and an arrest made.
Reportedly, UK security services, acting on a trip supplied by a foreign government, raided four homes in northwest London. Hezbollah's "Military Wing " was sanctioned in the United Kingdom in March, 2019. previously only the so called- Political Wing was sanctioned in the UK. Hezbollah is classified as a terrorist organization by the US, Israel and the Arab League.
There is speculation that information about the 2015 seizure, which is larger than the material used in the Oklahoma City bomb, was not released to the public, in an effort not to derail the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, the Iran nuclear agreement. Had this information been released timely, would public pressure in the UK have resulted in an earlier sanction against the Hezbollah Military Wing ? We cannot say, but denying the public the truth about terrorist threats that represent a clear and present danger is never prudent. Obviously, politics trumped public safety.
Saturday, June 8, 2019
CHOKSI'S MERITLESS APPEALS IN HIS ANTIGUA EXTRADITION CASE DELAY JUSTICE
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| Mehul Choksi |
Choksi's legal team has asked the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court to allow him to petition it, to review a decision of the trial court denying Choksi's application to allow an "expert witness" to testify, regarding the validity of India's extradition request. If and when Choksi receives an adverse decision, his lawyers have already indicated that they will petition the Privy Council. Legal authorities have already indicated that there are no valid grounds for the Privy Council to accept jurisdiction; his action is without legal merit.
One member of Choksi's legal team is, coincidentally, one of the well-connected Antigua attorneys who have delayed the extradition of the former financial regulator, Leroy King, for more than ten years. King faces a potential life sentence in the United States, for assisting the mega-Ponzi schemer, Allen Stanford, steal billions from his victims. The Choksi anti-extradition strategy appears to be a cookie-cutter copy of the King case, so do not expect a swift resolution.
The intentional delays in Choksi's extradition to India, while he is free to spend his criminal proceeds there, have seriously damaged Antigua's international image, especially in North America. Whether he will reside indefinitely in Antigua, and cheat justice, remains an open question that only the country's Prime Minister, Gaston Browne, can answer.
Friday, June 7, 2019
UN DENIES ACCESS TO LEBANON-BASED NGO THAT IS HEZBOLLAH FRONT ORGANIZATION
A majority of the members of the United Nations Economic & Social Council have voted against the admission of the Palestinian Association for Human Rights - Witness, which applied for special status, where the NGO would be able to advise the UN and take part in its activities. Witness is classified as a terrorist organization in the State of Israel.
Witness, which is a front organization for Hamas, itself a designated global terrorist organization in several Western countries, claims to support Palestinian prisoners incarcerated in Israel for terrorist acts, and to assist Palestinians living in Lebanon. Its leader, Mahmoud al-Hanafi, is known to have had meeting with the Hamas leadership, as well as those of Palestinian Islamic Jihad, which the United States asserts is actually a close ally of Hamas, but which maintains a separate identity to allow it to conduct terrorist actions against Israel as an alleged independent organization outside of Hamas control.
The fact that the Government of Lebanon allows such an obvious front organization for Hamas to freely operate there is not only disturbing, It is one more piece of evidence in support of the fact that Lebanon has become a State Sponsor of Terrorism, whether it be Hezbollah, Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard, or others. Consider that when assessing Country Risk for Lebanon.
DID ACCIDENTAL EXPOSURE OF PEP DATABASE TIP OFF HIDDEN PEPS ?
A "Hidden PEP" is a Politically Exposed Person who holds himself or herself abroad as a non-PEP, using a carefully constructed occupation or profession to deceive bankers into thinking that they have a low-risk, yet affluent, client. Typically, they open an account at an international bank, wait until a short period elapses, and then move the proceeds of corruption quickly through the account into a tax haven jurisdiction, or to a money launderer, abandoning the account, and moving on to another bank, to repeat the process. Later, the money laundering is exposed, but the PEP is long gone.
Another variation is to purchase a Citizenship by Investment (CBI/CIP) passport from an East Caribbean State, under an alias, where money talks, and effective due diligence can be quietly "waived" by a greedy government official. Either way, the PEP succeeds in his quest to move dirty money through your bank.
Now, since some third party provider negligently left off password protection of a major PEP database, said to contain between two and four million names, some of those Hidden PEPs may know now tat they have been made. With the benefit of facial recognition software, those with aliases can still be properly identified. We wonder if, somewhere, certain PEPs have been advised, by their money laundering advisors, that they are at risk, and that they must cease their dark activities.
US SANCTIONS IRAN'S LARGEST PETROCHEMICAL HOLDING COMPANY
The names of the subsidiaries can be located here.
CANADA: ESTIMATE OF MONEY LAUNDERING BY PROVINCE
This graph is based upon estimates, by province. The actual amount, most of which consists of the proceeds of crime laundered through real estate purchases, may be higher. Please note that the sums are in Canadian Dollars ($CDN) in billions.
COMPLIANCE PROGRAMS ARE NOT AFFECTED BY MUNICIPAL RESTRICTIONS ON FACIAL RECOGNITION SOFTWARE USE BY LAW ENFORCEMENT
If you are a compliance officer at a bank that is employing facial recognition software systems in your Customer Identification Program to verify identity, non-PEP status and correct legal name of new or prospective clients, do not be overly concerned by news regarding municipalities, or even states, passing statutes banning its use. Those laws are specifically directed to law enforcement and other government agencies who are using CCTV footage in mass surveillance programs, where the targeted individualS neither know of, or consent to, its use.
The use, by private industry, of facial recognition software, where the individuals involved give informed consent to its intended use, is outside the scope of the new legislation. Therefore, if you are deploying a facial recognition software platform to search social media, social networking sites, the Internet and image databases, to identify a new or prospective bank client, consent should be obtained.
It is humbly suggested that your counsel prepare a consent form, to be signed by new clients at account opening, or upon application, in which the client acknowledges that, in order to properly identify them, additional measures will be employed, including but not limited to facial recognition software, social media & social networking, Internet searches, database searches,and other resources. Consider this only broad guidelines, as your counsel may be aware of additional or alternative language that is more appropriate or relevant.
Compliance officers, at financial institutions, who are not currently using facial software programs searching social media, Internet and image database resources, to properly identify their customers, should seriously consider obtaining such a program, as the failure to effectively verify customer identity is generally considered compliance malpractice by regulators.
Thursday, June 6, 2019
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