Saturday, August 31, 2013

RUSSIAN LAW ENFORCEMENT UNCOVER $1.1 BILLION DOLLAR MONEY LAUNDERING OPERATION

RUSSIAN LAW ENFORCEMENT UNCOVER $1.1 BILLION DOLLAR MONEY LAUNDERING OPERATION


FROM THE - JOURNALS of Monte Friesner – Criminal & Intelligence Analyst and Consulaire for WANTED SA.

Russian police said that they uncovered a money-laundering scheme in which more than 400 people were involved in transferring $1.1 billion out of the country.
 
Several commercial banks and about 100 Russian and foreign companies -- some of which were so-called "one-day companies" -- were used to funnel the money abroad, the Interior Ministry said in a statement.
 
The money was used for real estate purchases in Cyprus, Republic of Panama and the Baltic states.
 

In more than five years of operations, the criminal organization earned a 2 percent profit on the transfers, amounting to about $17.3 million, police said.
 
Police arrested seven people considered to be leaders of the organization, including a 42-year-old man thought to be the head of the operation, RIA Novosti. The man's name was not reported.
 

During the investigation, police confiscated more than $30 million in a total of 85 searches.
One-day companies -- companies created to exist as little as a few hours -- were used to transfer the money, officials said.
 
Of the 3.9 million companies in Russia, just 2 million are real, the Central Bank said. Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov said one-day companies prevent up to $30 billion from going into the government's tax revenues each year.
 
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Friday, August 30, 2013

HEZBOLLAH OPERATES FROM PANAMA


FROM THE - JOURNALS of Monte Friesner – Criminal & Intelligence Analyst and Consulaire for WANTED SA ~ Contributed & Written by Kenneth Rijock
 
PANAMA IGNORES TERRORIST FINANCING OPERATIONS ON ITS SOIL
 
Readers of this blog have known for years that Hezbollah is moving money to Lebanon, through banks in the Republic of Panama, but new information confirms that the specially designated global terrorist organization actually maintains an office in Panama City.
 
If I have this information, then certainly Panamanian law enforcement authorities also are aware of it.
 
The question remains, why does Panama allow Hezbollah terrorist financing operations to operate ?
 
Are payments being made to corrupt law enforcement officials, or are their relatives in the private sector earning large profits from their participation in the transfers of funds ? 
 
Whatever the reason, there is no gatekeeper on duty in Panama, when it comes to suppression of terrorist financing activities.
 
 
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HEZBOLLAH OPERATES FROM PANAMA.



FROM THE - JOURNALS of Monte Friesner – Criminal & Intelligence Analyst and Consulaire for WANTED SA ~ Contributed & Written by Kenneth Rijock

PANAMA IGNORES TERRORIST FINANCING OPERATIONS ON ITS SOIL


Readers of this blog have known for years that Hezbollah is moving money to Lebanon, through banks in the Republic of Panama, but new information confirms that the specially designated global terrorist organization actually maintains an office in Panama City.
 
If I have this information, then certainly Panamanian law enforcement authorities also are aware of it.
 
The question remains, why does Panama allow Hezbollah terrorist financing operations to operate ? Are payments being made to corrupt law enforcement officials, or are their relatives in the private sector earning large profits from their participation in the transfers of funds ? 
 
Whatever the reason, there is no gatekeeper on duty in Panama, when it comes to suppression of terrorist financing activities.

U.A.E. FREEZES BANK ACCOUNT OF ALLEGED FRAUDS TERS


FROM THE - JOURNALS of Monte Friesner – Criminal & Intelligence Analyst and Consulaire for WANTED SA ~ Contributed & Written by Kenneth Rijock
 
CENTRAL BANK OF UAE AML & SUSPICIOUS CASE UNIT ISSUES ALERT AND FREEZE ORDER

The Anti-money Laundering and Suspicious Case Unit of the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates has issued a Circular* requiring that accounts and investments of three named individuals be frozen, under the orders of the Public Prosecutor of Dubai.
 
While I can find no public announcement of financial crime charges, one should assume that there is an active investigation in progress. Whether they are fugitives from justice is not known.
The individuals named are as follows. Remember that there will always be variations in the spelling of Arabic names in English:
 
(1) Samar Elyas Assaf: Said to be a Lebanese female bank executive. I note that there is an a Samar Assaf who works in the UAE at HSBC Bank Middle East Ltd., but am unable to confirm that she is the same individual as the one mentioned in the Alert.
 
(2) Armin Esmail: Said to be a US resident, and an executive director at a property firm. Court records show that an individual with this name was convicted twice in the US, on narcotics charges, and unsuccessfully fought his subsequent removal from America. Again, no confirmation is available. See possibly an alias: Armin Eivanaki Esmaili.
 
(3) Haseeb Khan Israfeel Khan: listed as a Pakistani national. No further information is available.
 
Should any of these individuals have accounts at your bank, it is humbly suggested that you contact your bank counsel forthwith.
 
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Thursday, August 29, 2013

PANAMA BEARER SHARES PROMOTE FRAUD OF ASSETS.


FROM THE - JOURNALS of Monte Friesner – Criminal & Intelligence Analyst and Consulaire for WANTED SA ~ Contributed & Written by Kenneth Rijock

PANAMA UNDER INTERNATIONAL PRESSURE TO ABOLISH BEARER SHARES

According to reliable local sources, the Republic of Panama is under intense international pressure to outlaw bearer shares for corporations, in any form. You may recall that recent legislation allows them to continue, albeit under certain restrictions.
 
The parties named as among those pushing for reform of Panamanian corporation law are the United States, Canada, and the European Union.
 
Bearer share fraud, where a trusted intermediary, generally a banker or financial services professional, literally steals the company, and its assets, but taking possession of the shares of stock, and exercising control over them, is widespread, and have been seen to targets Europeans and North Americans living or working in Panama.
 
Some of the Panamanian judges require the owner of a bearer share certificate, if he or she was not issued the stock at the time of incorporation, to produce a Bill of Sale that itemizes the assets, but in Panama's notoriously corrupt court system, justice is not often served for the complaining party.
 
Will we have to wait until Panama has a new president for reform ? We cannot say, but so long as Panama allows widespread bearer share fraud, by failing to change its laws, risk levels for foreign businessmen will remain elevated.


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BARCLAYS BANK FOLLOWING RULES.


FROM THE - JOURNALS of Monte Friesner – Criminal & Intelligence Analyst and Consulaire for WANTED SA ~ Contributed & Written by Kenneth Rijock

BARCLAYS: DO NOT GIVE IN TO PRESSURE TO KEEP MSB ACCOUNTS OPEN OF COMPANIES THAT TRANSFER TO COUNTRIES WITH NO AML/CFT

The news, that certain developing countries are exerting political pressure upon Barclays Bank to reverse its decision to close MSB accounts, where the companies transfer funds to countries that have no effective AML/CFT, is extremely disturbing.
 
If expats in the UK have sufficient money to send remittances home, using money service businesses, they can certainly join the ranks of those who have bank accoJunts, and send funds through real financial institutions, with real compliance.
 
Most of them enjoy a decent standard of living, and I do not buy the argument that they cannot afford to maintain a bank account.
 
Some third-world MSBs, as we have learned, are controlled or owned by criminal organizations; others are making extortion payments to global terrorist organizations. Many MSBs have non-transparent ownership, which conflicts with banks' responsibility to "Know their MSB."
 
I fully understand the arguments for keeping the MSB accounts open, but I respectfully disagree; the risk of facilitating money laundering, or of facilitating terrorist financing, trumps the expat public's needs for a less expensive funds transfer resource, especially when we see that designated terrorist groups either take money from them, or use their facilities to operate. Foreign politicians, leave Barclays alone, please.
 
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VENETIAN CASINO IN LAS VEGAS IS GULTY OF MONEY LAUNDERING.


FROM THE - JOURNALS of Monte Friesner – Criminal & Intelligence Analyst and Consulaire for WANTED SA ~ Contributed & Written by Kenneth Rijock

NEVADA CASINO AGREES TO TURN OVER $47M FOR ANTI-MONEY LAUNDERING FAILURES

The Las Vegas Sands Corp., operator of the Venetian-Palazzo Hotel in Las Vegas, has entered into a non-prosecution agreement, with the United States Attorney's office in Lois Angeles, whereby the casino will turn over $47,400,300, which represents profits the casino earned from a high-stakes gambler, their most profitable client, who was later charged with narcotics trafficking in the US and Mexico.
 
The casino failed to file any SARCs, the Suspicious Activity Reports for casinos, upon Zhenli Ye Gon, its largest, all-cash, up-front gambler, when it knew, or should have known, that he had no business or lawful occupation, and that there was no reasonable explanation for his transactions.
 
If the name sounds familiar, Ye Gon is the individual from whose residence in 2009 Mexican law enforcement seized $207m , all in cash, which is, to my memory, the largest bulk cash seizure in the Western Hemisphere.
 
Ye Gon, a Chinese businessman with a factory in Mexico, reportedly shipped precursor chemicals for Methamphetamine manufacturing from China.
The US Attorney stated that the casino committed these violations of anti-money laundering compliance:
 
(1) Failed to investigate the customer, his companies, and his source of funds.
 
(2) Failed to conduct deposit-pattern analysis of incoming front-money payments, and payments for previous advances of credit.
 
(3) Failed to understand and appreciate the layering and structuring methods that the client participated in.
 
(4) Failed to appreciate that there was no link between the client and the shell companies that he claimed to own and control, and from whom incoming wire transfers originated.
 
(5) Failed to be suspicious of multiple wire transfers on the same day, or consecutive days.
 
(6) Failed to be suspicious of the client's use of multiple third-party fund sources, especially seven different Mexican casas de cambios.
 
(7) Failed to be suspicious when the client routed payments through Mexico & the casino's Hong Kong subsidiary, for credit in Las Vegas.
 
(8) Failed to conduct an investigation when the client requested to use a non-casino name account to route funds into the casino.
 
My favorite items are the client's $45m wire transfer into casino accounts, and the fact that he deposited $13m in cashier's checks at the casino; We call this compliance malpractice.
The corporation operating the casino cooperated in the investigation, and has promised to make extensive efforts to enhance its internal compliance program.
 
 
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Wednesday, August 28, 2013

U.S. DISTRICT FORBID TO DISCLOSE CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION ON VIKTOR BOUT'S CASE

FROM THE - JOURNALS of Monte Friesner – Criminal & Intelligence Analyst and Consulaire for WANTED SA ~ Contributed & Written by Kenneth Rijock
 

NEW YORK FEDERAL JUDGE ENTERS PROTECTIVE ORDER IN CHICHAKLI CASSE
 
United States District Judge William Pauley has entered a Protective Order in the criminal case against Viktor Bout associate, Richard Ammar Chichakli, prohibiting the public disclosure of certain discovery documents that are not already in the public domain from US vs. Bout, and from Richard Chichakli vs. Adam Szubin.
 
The United States Attorney's office in New York had written the judge, requesting that he take this action.
Included in the Protective Order*:
 
(1) The contents of the laptop computer seized from Viktor Bout, when he was arrested in Thailand.
 
(2) Emails between Chichakli and a specified individual.
 
(3) Third-party bank records, wire transfer records, and other financial documents.
 
(4) Documents from a corporation, related to aircraft purchases involving the defendant.
 
(5) Audio recordings and transcripts of conversations with certain witnesses.
 
(6) Information, not in the public domain, regarding Chichakli's dealing with OFAC.
 
After the case has concluded, including any appellate proceedings, all the information above, which is designated by the Court to be Confidential Information, and which will be held by the defendant's standby counsel (he is representing himself in this case), shall be returned to the United States Government, including all copies, or destroyed.
 
Some of the discovery in the case appears to be sensitive information, and is being withheld from public dissemination, probably to protect American intelligence services. It will, however, be available to Chichakli and his counsel, in connection with his defense.

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SEIZED $ 271.463 IN U.S. AND IRAQI CURRENCY, UNDECLARED COMING FROM JORDAN.


FROM THE - JOURNALS of Monte Friesner – Criminal & Intelligence Analyst and Consulaire for WANTED SA ~ Contributed & Written by Kenneth Rijock




INBOUND BULK CASH SMUGGLERS ARRESTED AT DETROIT AIRPORT WITH US & IRAQI CURRENCY
 
 
Currency flight continues unabated from Iraq. Customs & Border Protection Officers at Detroit Metropolitan Airport seized $271,463, in US & Iraqi currency, from two travelers arriving from Amman, Jordan, after they failed to declare the cash in their luggage.
 
Hekmat Bahnam & Hedeel Bahnam, Iraqis residing in the US, were reportedly charged* with Bulk Cash Smuggling and Failure to Declare. The defendants arrived via Montreal, on a Royal Jordanian flight.



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Tuesday, August 27, 2013

NEW LAW AGAINST THE LATIN AMERICAN PEPS



FROM THE - JOURNALS of Monte Friesner – Criminal & Intelligence Analyst and Consulaire for WANTED SA ~ Contributed & Written by Kenneth Rijock

PENDING AMERICAN LEGISLATION WILL SANCTION LATIN AMERICAN PEPS WHO ENGAGE IN CIVIL RIGHTS ABUSES
 
 
A bill introduced in the House of Representatives (HR 1687) will, if it becomes law, allow the United States to impose severe sanctions on certain Latin American PEPs who engage in serious human rights violations.
 
Known as the Countering ALBA Act of 2013, the bill is specifically directed against those countries who are members of ALBA, an association of left-leaning national governments whose domestic policy is basically undemocratic, and who have an extensive history of engaging in human rights abuses of their citizens.
The ALBA countries are :
 
 
(1) The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela
 
(2) The Republic of Nicaragua
 
(3) The Plurinational State of Bolivia
 
(4) The Republic of Ecuador (Cuba, which is also a member, is already universally sanctioned by the United States for all purposes)
 
 
The bill would impose severe sanctions upon those who order, control, or direct, serious human rights abuses against their citizens. It includes officials of ALBA governments, government-controlled NGOs, or persons acting on behalf of ALBA governments. The sanctions include, but are not limited to:
(A) Ineligibility for US visas.
(B) Blocking of property in the United States.
(C) Prohibitions on conducting financial transactions in the US.
The sanctions can also be imposed upon officials in ALBA countries that transfer goods or technologies that facilitate human rights abuses, and those that enforce censorship there.
 
Once imposed, the sanctions will for all practical purposes, be for an indefinite term, for they cannot be lifted  until the offending country releases all its political prisoners, ceases violence, unlawful detention, torture and other abuses, and installs an independent judiciary.
 
Banks whose clients include Latin American PEPs from the above countries should monitor the progress of this legislation through Congress, for some of their clients may thereafter be sanctioned, without any prior notice, which could become a public relations nightmare for the bank, as well as result in a major exit of clients to your competition.
 
If there are PEPs banking with you, who are known to be involved, directly or indirectly, in human rights abuses, especially those from Venezuela, you would be well advised to handle the situation sooner, rather than later, lest some enterprising journalist blows the whistle on your clients' identities, angering the expats from that country who live in the United States, and possibly alienating some of your client base.
 
Frankly, the income you derive from those clients is not worth the risk of reputation damage. Remember well the lessons of Riggs Bank, ladies & gentlemen.
 
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NEW LAW AGAINST THE LATIN AMERICAN PEPS


FROM THE - JOURNALS of Monte Friesner – Criminal & Intelligence Analyst and Consulaire for WANTED SA ~ Contributed & Written by Kenneth Rijock

PENDING AMERICAN LEGISLATION WILL SANCTION LATIN AMERICAN PEPS WHO ENGAGE IN CIVIL RIGHTS ABUSES

all purposes)
The bill would impose severe sanctions upon those who order, control, or direct, serious human rights abuses against their citizens. It includes officials of ALBA governments, government-controlled NGOs, or persons acting on behalf of ALBA governments. The sanctions include, but are not limited to:








(B) Blocking of property in the United States.
(C) Prohibitions on conducting financial transactions in the US.
The sanctions can also be imposed upon officials in ALBA countries that transfer goods or technologies that facilitate human rights abuses, and those that enforce censorship there.
Once imposed, the sanctions will for all practical purposes, be for an indefinite term, for they cannot be lifted  until the offending
A bill introduced in the House of Representatives (HR 1687) will, if it becomes law, allow the United States to impose severe sanctions on certain Latin American PEPs who engage in serious human rights violations.
Known as the Countering ALBA Act of 2013, the bill is specifically directed against those countries who are members of ALBA, an association of left-leaning national governments whose domestic policy is basically undemocratic, and who have an extensive history of engaging in human rights abuses of their citizens.
The ALBA countries are :
(1) The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela
(2) The Republic of Nicaragua
(3) The Plurinational State of Bolivia
(4) The Republic of Ecuador (Cuba, which is also a member, is already universally sanctioned by the United States for  country releases all its political prisoners, ceases violence, unlawful detention, torture and other abuses, and installs an independent judiciary.
Banks whose clients include Latin American PEPs from the above countries should monitor the progress of this legislation through Congress, for some of their clients may thereafter be sanctioned, without any prior notice, which could become a public relations nightmare for the bank, as well as result in a major exit of clients to your competition.
If there are PEPs banking with you, who are known to be involved, directly or indirectly, in human rights abuses, especially those from Venezuela, you would be well advised to handle the situation sooner, rather than later, lest some enterprising journalist blows the whistle on your clients' identities, angering the expats from that country who live in the United States, and possibly alienating some of your client base.
Frankly, the income you derive from those clients is not worth the risk of reputation damage. Remember well the lessons of Riggs Bank, ladies & gentlemen.

   
PENDING AMERICAN LEGISLATION WILL SANCTION LATIN AMERICAN PEPS WHO ENGAGE IN CIVIL RIGHTS ABUSES



 A bill introduced in the House of Representatives (HR 1687) will, if it becomes law, allow the United States to impose severe sanctions on certain Latin American PEPs who engage in serious human rights violations. Known as the Countering ALBA Act of 2013, the bill is specifically directed against those countries who are members of ALBA, an association of left-leaning national governments whose domestic policy is basically undemocratic, and who have an extensive history of engaging in human rights abuses of their citizens.
 The ALBA countries are :
 (1) The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela
 (2) The Republic of Nicaragua
 (3) The Plurinational State of Bolivia
 (4) The Republic of Ecuador
 (Cuba, which is also a member, is already universally sanctioned by the United States for all purposes)
 The bill would impose severe sanctions upon those who order, control, or direct, serious human rights abuses against their citizens. It includes officials of ALBA governments, government-controlled NGOs, or persons acting on behalf of ALBA governments. The sanctions include, but are not limited to:
 (A) Ineligibility for US visas.
 (B) Blocking of property in the United States.
 (C) Prohibitions on conducting financial transactions in the US.

 The sanctions can also be imposed upon officials in ALBA countries that transfer goods or technologies that facilitate human rights abuses, and those that enforce censorship there.
 Once imposed, the sanctions will for all practical purposes, be for an indefinite term, for they cannot be lifted  until the offending country releases all its political prisoners, ceases violence, unlawful detention, torture and other abuses, and installs an independent judiciary.
 Banks whose clients include Latin American PEPs from the above countries should monitor the progress of this legislation through Congress, for some of their clients may thereafter be sanctioned, without any prior notice, which could become a public relations nightmare for the bank, as well as result in a major exit of clients to your competition.


  If there are PEPs banking with you, who are known to be involved, directly or indirectly, in human rights abuses, especially those from Venezuela, you would be well advised to handle the situation sooner, rather than later, lest some enterprising journalist blows the whistle on your clients' identities, angering the expats from that country who live in the United States, and possibly alienating some of your client base. Frankly, the income you derive from those clients is not worth the risk of reputation damage. Remember well the lessons of Riggs Bank, ladies & gentlemen

VIKTOR BOUT WAS TRICKED BY THE U.S. GOVERMENT.

FROM THE - JOURNALS of Monte Friesner – Criminal & Intelligence Analyst and Consulaire for WANTED SA ~ Contributed & Written by Kenneth Rijock

APPEALS COURT HEARS ORAL ARGUMENT IN VIKTOR BOUT CASE

This week, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals held oral Argument in Viktor Bout's appeal of his Federal arms trafficking conviction. Through his attorney, Albert Dayan, the appellant argued:

(1) He was the target of a sting, convicted of a "non-crime," and tricked by the United States Government into making anti-US statements, in a case began by the White House, or the NSA, and carried out by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), for purely political reasons.

(2) He was the victim of a "vindictive" prosecution.

The argument of the United States: Bout was targeted as a national security threat, because he posed a very "clear and present danger" to Americans.

Questions from the three Federal Judges, sitting on the panel, reportedly seemed to indicate their skepticism with Bout's arguments. When the ruling is published, we shall immediately analyze it, and report it here.

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Monday, August 26, 2013

BO GUAGUA GAINS PROFITS FOR MOTHER WHO MURDER HER BUSINESS PARTNER



FROM THE - JOURNALS of Monte Friesner – Criminal & Intelligence Analyst and Consulaire for WANTED SA   ~Contributed & Written by Kenneth Rijock ~
 
 
COURT SAYS BO XILAI'S ILICIT WEALTH = $4.4m, AND ASSORTED OTHER CHINESE SUSPECTSS
 
What if it was you in that chair ? Court testimony in the corruption trial of disgraced Chinese leader Bo Xilai has revealed that he embezzled government funds, and took bribes, that totaled the equivalent of $4.4m .
 
You would do well to remember that, the next time a prospective bank client who professes to be a wealthy Chinese businessmen comes in to open a new account relationship at your Western bank.
 
Is he really a PEP, and has he artfully concealed who he is fronting for ? If you bank a number of customers like him, it might be prudent to retain the services of a good Hong Kong investigative firm, to separate the legitimate clients from the PEPs.
 
One more item about China and risk; you certainly are aware that a British businessman, and his American wife, both engaged in a China-based risk management firm, have been detained by the authorities, on the patently bogus charge that he once did contract work for a foreign pharmaceutical firm now accused of bribery.
 
Some observers now claim that the case was orchestrated to give local Chinese companies an advantage over their foreign competition in the Chinese marketplace.
 
Finally, not to intentionally frighten you about China risk, but friends and family of Bo Xilai claim that not all the proceedings at his trial are being transcribed and released to the outside media.
 
They specifically state that Bo was subjected to literally a hundred hard interrogations, during which he fainted at least 27 times.
 
If you are working in China, or you have staff who are, you may want to factor this type of treatment into your risk rating for engaging in business in China, where your company maintains an office, and staff, there.
 
If you have never been interrogated, it is not an experience that I recommend, unless you have a very strong personality, and the ability to stand up under pressure.
 
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VENEZUELA, SUPPORTS IRAN IN EVADING GLOBAL SANCTIONS ON ITS OIL.


FROM THE - JOURNALS of Monte Friesner – Criminal & Intelligence Analyst and Consulaire for WANTED SA ~ Contributed & Written by Kenneth Rijock
AGREEMENT BETWEEN VENEZUELA AND PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY IS WINDOW DRESSING FOR IRANIAN OIL SANCTIONS EVASION

Today's announced agreement, between the foreign ministers of Venezuela, and the Palestinian Authority, through which Venezuelan will sell the Authority oil "at a fair price," is just another patently transparent effort, by Venezuela, to assist Iran in evading global sanctions on Iranian oil.
It is an insult to the intelligence of those nations that have imposed the sanctions, and probably originated among Venezuela's Cuban advisers, who are actually running many Venezuelan government agencies. Don't they teach geography in Cuban universities anymore ?
Any economics student will tell you that the costs of shipping oil across the Atlantic, and through the Mediterranean would make the sale prohibitive, for Middle East consumption.
Iran has a large number of tankers, lying within its territorial waters, all warehousing oil that it cannot sell on the world market.
Rebranding it as of Venezuelan origin, then reflagging some of its tankers and changing their names, is easy for Iran to accomplish, as it has been playing a cat-and-mouse game of sanctions evasion for years, and it is a short hop to the Palestinian Territories, but it is really going there ?
Of course, the real goal here may be to have the "Venezuelan" oil quietly sold by the Palestinian Authority, without delivery for local consumption, thereby assisting Iran in dumping its oil products on the consuming countries, who may just buy the ficticious origin.
Wherever the oil ends up, rest assured that any objective analysis will show that it was taken out of the ground in the Islamic Republic of Iran.
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SCOTT ROTHSTEIN - PONZI CRIMINAL, THIEF, FRAUDSTER IS NOW GOVERNMENT "SNITCH"


FROM THE - JOURNALS of Monte Friesner – Criminal & Intelligence Analyst and Consulaire for WANTED SA   ~Contributed & Written by Kenneth Rijock ~
WHEN WILL BILLION DOLLAR PONZI SCHEMER QUIETLY GET HIS SENTENCE REDUCTION ?

The Ponzi schemer, with his watch collection Former Fort Lauderdale attorney Scott Rothstein is probably one of the most despised individuals in Florida, after it was revealed that his investment program (Ponzi scheme) had defrauded victims out of more than $1.2bn.
As the consequence of his crimes, he drew a 50-year sentence. Federal law requires him to serve at least 85% of his sentence before he can be released, which should be of some comfort to his victims, but he may be getting out of prison earlier than they want, which may promote hard feelings on their part. They may feel that justice was not served, and they may be right.
 On June 8, 2011, within the one year period mandated by law, the United States Attorney filed a Motion for Reduction of Sentence and for Stay of Ruling, pursuant to Rule 35, Fed.R.Crim.P. The text of the relevant paragraph follows:
 " Based upon the defendant having provided Substantial Assistance to the government, in the investigation and/or prosecution of others, and further moves the Court to stay any ruling on  this motion until the defendant's cooperation is complete."  Motion at 1.
 The motion also details when the US Attorney will further contact the Court:
 "Upon completion of the defendant's cooperation, the government will file a motion for a hearing at which time the government will advise the Court of the nature, extent and value of the defendant's cooperation." Motion at 2.
 Rothstein's cooperation may earn him a sentence reduction, which will probably be granted without any mention of it in the media, meaning that many of the victims may not learn about it. 
While he did provide valuable assistance to the prosecution, including at least one case where he wore a concealed audio device, to snare an alleged organized crime figure, the victims do not want this Ponzi schemer to get favorable treatment, due to the enormity of his crimes, and the damage that he did to them.
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PAY ATTENTION TO YOUR BANK CLIENTS THEY CAN BE CONSIDERED AS A "NATIONAL SECURITY CONCERN"


FROM THE - JOURNALS of Monte Friesner – Criminal & Intelligence Analyst and Consulaire for WANTED SA ~ Contributed & Written by Kenneth Rijock
IS YOUR BANK CLIENT A "NATIONAL SECURITY CONCERN," AND YOU ARE UNAWARE OF THIS FACT ?

Some of your bank clients are deemed national security risks, but the US Government agency USCIS does not feel that it has to share that information with you.
Information about citizenship applicants whose cases are placed into a little-known American immigration track, designed to identify possible terrorists, and to deny them US citizenship, through indefinite delays, is not available to the public, with the result that bankers do not know which of their clients are considered "National Security Concerns," and are thus unable to adjust their own internal customer risk levels accordingly.
The disturbing aspect to this program, known as the Controlled Application Review and Resolution Program, is that individuals denied US Citizenship are still allowed to reside in America, as lawful permanent residents.
This onerous label, National Security Concern, is not disclosed outside the US law enforcement community, meaning that private companies, who have no access to confidential, or law enforcement sensitive, information, never can learn from USCIS that a bank client:
(1) Has a record of residing in, or traveling through, jurisdictions of known terrorist activity, or usual travel patterns; or large-scale transfers or receipt of funds.
(2) Is a close associate of another subject or National Security Concern.
(3)  Is a member, or participant, in any organization that engages in suspected terrorist activities.
The fact that a potential bank client is linked, even indirectly, to groups or individuals who are suspected of planning terrorism, should be available to compliance officers conducting due diligence.
Unfortunately, the United States will not disclose this information to its own citizens. Let me share with you a possible way to rule out a new client as an individual whose citizenship application may be facing an indefinite delay, due to his or her diversion into the Controlled Application Review Program:
(A) Does the client have legal permanent residency (green-card holder) ?
(B) has he applied for US citizenship ?
(C) has his application been in process for several years, with no end in sight ?
If so, his application may have been sidelined, indefinitely, as a person of concern. This method is not always foolproof, but is just one of many practical suggestions put forth here to aid compliance officers.

Financiera Pronto Cash , Monte Friesner , Kenneth Rijock ,Tatiana Nazarova
Always look at where the client is from; both the Middle East and Latin America qualify under (1) above, and examine all other factors, before making an informed decision.
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HAS BO GUAGUA FULL ACCESS TO FAMILY'S DIRTY MONEY ?


FROM THE - JOURNALS of Monte Friesner – Criminal & Intelligence Analyst and Consulaire for WANTED SA ~ Contributed & Written by Kenneth Rijock

DOES BO GUAGUA HAVE BO XILAI'S STASH OF US CURRENCY ?

Testimony from the ongoing criminal trial of Bo Xilai, and made available by the Government of China, indicates that Bo's wife, Gu Kailai, often raided the family's safe, which was said to contain large amounts of Yuan, and tens of thousands of dollars in US currency. The questions now arise:
(1) Where is that cache of US Dollars now, and does the son, Bo GuaGua, have access to it? 
2) How did a Chinese PEP acquire a large load of dollars ? Did he accept bribes or kickbacks from American-based companies seeking to do business in China ?
(3) How deeply was Bo GuaGua involved in the corruption ? There has been testimony, from Chinese businessmen, that he accepted "gifts" amounting to a large sum, from them. What else did he do, and did he accept illegal cash payments, outside China, in the UK or US, on behalf of his father ?
(4) Are there any hidden real estate, or bank account, assets, of the Bo family, in the UK or the US ?
Isn't it ironic: the son of two obviously corrupt Chinese PEPs is admitted to one of America's most prominent law schools, notwithstanding that there are questions about how his education has been paid for, about his acceptance of expensive gifts, from Chinese businessmen,  and about his own conduct. I guess this means that Columbia Law School admissions officers do not perform due diligence investigations on their applicants.
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Friday, August 23, 2013

MURCIA GUZMAN REOPENED CRIMINAL CASE IN PANAMA AND COLOMBIA.


FROM THE - JOURNALS of Monte Friesner – Criminal & Intelligence Analyst and Consulaire for WANTED SA ~ Contributed & Written by Kenneth Rijock

PANAMA REOPENS INVESTIGATION INTO DAVID MURCIA GUZMAN CASE

Reliable sources within the Republic of Panama have indicated that the government has reopened the criminal investigation against the imprisoned Colombian Ponzi schemer, David Eduardo Helmut Murcia Guzmán.
The focus is reportedly upon those Panamanian businessmen who received significant portions of the $2bn Murcia obtained from his victims, who were supposed to invest it on his behalf, but who stole those funds when Murcia was charged with criminal activities in Panama, Colombia and the United States.
Murcia's Panamanian associates purchased a substantial amount of real estate, yachts, and luxury automobiles, on his behalf, but later absconded with those assets, rather than hold it for him in trust, as he was led to believe.
Many of those properties have been identified, and they are now held in the names of Murcia's former associates and advisers, who are now powerful people in the Government of Panama, and wealthy Panama City businessmen.
As for Murcia, he is currently serving a long prison term somewhere in the United States, but his whereabouts are unknown; some sources say he is in the Witsec [Witness Protection] program, but other indicate that he has been released, due to the quality of information he gave US law enforcement, and he is living in America.
One should assume that he is unhappy with those trusted advisers who were the thieves.
Is the new investigation simply was way to release the increasing US Government pressure ? Will it end without any criminal charges being filed against anyone ? We cannot say, but some prominent businessmen in Panama are probably having trouble sleeping this week.
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IRAN SANCTIONS DESTROYING FINANCIAL ECONOMY.

FROM THE - JOURNALS of Monte Friesner – Criminal & Intelligence Analyst and Consulaire for WANTED SA ~ Contributed & Written by MARJORIE OLSTER
IRAN OFFICIALS DEPOSITING PROFITS IN USA, CANADA & EUROPE BANKS.

New signs are emerging that international sanctions are taking a deepening toll on Iran's economy — putting billions of dollars in oil money out of the government's reach.
Yet there is no indication the distress is achieving the West's ultimate goal of forcing the Islamic Republic to halt its nuclear program.
Iran has proved adept at working around sanctions and if oil prices don't plummet, U.S. analysts say the country probably has enough economic stamina to reach what the West suspects is its true intention — producing nuclear weapons.
"They can hang on for a long time," said Steve Hanke, a professor of applied economics at Johns Hopkins University who follows Iran's economy.
 "The sanctions as a deterrent for nuclear ambitions are more or less futile because all the experts will tell you they can (make a weapon) in a couple years."
Sanctions are at the core of international efforts to stop Iran's nuclear program. And if they fail, it will leave the West with some grim options.
The U.S. and its allies may have to choose between accepting a nuclear-armed Iran run by hard-line clerics or military action that could fuel more turmoil in the already tumultuous Middle East and still fail to cripple the nuclear facilities.
There is some hope that the recent election of President Hasan Rouhani, considered a relative moderate in a hard-line regime, could lead to a more conciliatory Iran.
But Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei controls the nuclear program and all other major policy decisions, and he has maintained a tough stance.
Rouhani campaigned on a promise to seek relief from sanctions — something that many in the U.S. saw as one of the first tangible effects of sanctions on nuclear policy.
But he has also remained committed to the nuclear program, which Iran insists is exclusively for producing energy and medical research.
Sanctions had already been putting heavy pressure on Iran's economy for the past two years. Oil exports were slashed in half, the rial currency lost two-thirds of its value since late 2011 and inflation shot up.
But since Rouhani's election in June, there have been a number of indications the distress is deepening.
Rouhani acknowledged that economic damage was even worse than his predecessor, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, had let on.
This week, local news reports said Tehran may come up short of revenue to cover this year's budget.
Analysts in the U.S. have concluded that inflation is actually much worse than Iran has reported and could be almost double the official rate of about 34 percent annually as of the end of July.
One of the biggest blows to the economy resulted from sanctions imposed in February aimed at cutting off Iran's access to oil revenues.
Oil importers are required to pay into locked bank accounts that Tehran can access only to purchase non-sanctioned goods or humanitarian supplies. If importers do not comply, they face the threat of being shut out of the U.S. financial system.
Last week, the director of Iran's Parliamentary Research Center, Kazem Jalali, said more than $60 billion of the country's oil revenue is frozen in foreign banks and out of reach — a figure that could not be independently confirmed.
The piles of frozen cash accumulating in foreign accounts are almost certainly cutting into Iran's accessible foreign reserves — money that can be critical to pay for imports to Iran.
If foreign reserves run short, it could also limit Iran's ability to prop up the rial and keep it from collapsing.
Mark Dubowitz, director of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and an advocate of tougher sanctions who has testified before Congress, said the amount of accessible reserves is "the single most important piece of intelligence that U.S. policymakers today need to know." He said that will determine whether "the Iranians drop dead economically before or after they reach undetectable nuclear breakout."
A widely cited report last month by the Washington-based Institute for Science and International Security concluded that Iran will be able to produce enough weapons-grade uranium by mid-2014 for a nuclear breakout, or a quick dash to a bomb, possibly within weeks.
The breakout could be so fast that international watchdogs and Western intelligence might not be able to detect it.
Proponents of sanctions hope that the drag on the economy will force Iran to switch course. But trying to discern the true dimensions of the economic impact is almost impossible because authorities either release data with long lag times or do not report numbers accurately.
Outside sources of information are sparse.
The International Monetary Fund estimated foreign reserves were down to $80 billion in March from $96 billion a year earlier. The $80 billion is still a healthy level, but it's not clear how much of the money is accessible and how much is frozen in accounts overseas by sanctions.
Economic Research firm Roubini Global Economics and Dubowitz's Foundation for Defense of Democracies assessed in a new draft report that $20 billion to $50 billion of reserves is accessible. But the figures cannot be independently verified.
Still, analysts say Iran's economy has proved so far to be resilient and flexible enough to offset some sanctions damage. And the rial's devaluation has one advantage — it has made exports cheaper and thus more appealing. That has helped the country diversify its exports and become less reliant on sanctioned oil.
Iran boosted exports of non-oil goods that are not subject to sanctions by 20 percent in 2012, according to the Institute of International Finance (IIF), an economic think tank.
Those include oil byproducts such as petrochemicals as well as cement, iron ore, pistachios and Persian carpets.
Oil remains Iran's dominant export and Garbis Iradian, deputy director of the IIF's Africa and Middle East Department, said Iran can withstand sanctions for a long while if prices do not drop sharply.
"As long as oil prices stay at around $100, the sanctions have a negative impact, but it's OK, they can survive for several years. If oil prices drop below $80, they will feel the impact of sanctions," he said.
Meanwhile, U.S. lawmakers are looking to further tighten sanctions. The House of Representatives approved a bill last month that, if it becomes law, would further limit Iran's access to its foreign currency reserves and impose a virtual oil and trade embargo.
It would commit the U.S. to the goal of ending all Iranian oil sales worldwide by 2015 — the year after some experts estimate Tehran could build a bomb.
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Thursday, August 22, 2013

RICHARD AMMAR CHICHAKLI HAS INFORMATION THAT IMPLICATES U.S. GOVERNMENT AND ATTORNEYS ASKS RESTRICTION TO DISCLOSE THE INFORMATION

FROM THE - JOURNALS of Monte Friesner – Criminal & Intelligence Analyst and Consulaire for WANTED SA ~ Contributed & Written by Kenneth Rijock

UNITED STATES ATTORNEY ASKS COURT TO DENY CHICHAKLI THE ABILITY TO DISCLOSE SOME OF THE DISCOVERY PRODUCED IN THE CASE

Three members of the United States Attorney's Office have sent a letter to the trial judge, in the Richard Chichakli case, asking the Court to enter a Protective Order restricting the defendant's public disclosure of recordings and transcripts, bank records, and other documents, and to the contents of Viktor Bout's laptop computer, which was seized from him in Thailand, at the time of his arrest in March 2008.

Apparently, some of the contents of Bout's laptop were admitted as exhibits during his criminal trial, and became part of the public record, but there is other information, being disclosed to Chichakli and his attorneys, pursuant to Rule 16, Fed. R. Crim. P. before trial.

 If you have not seen these websites, Chichakli has disclosed a large amount of information about Bout on the Internet, in the past, including details of a Federal civil suit he filed against Adam Szubin, as head of OFAC.

The Government has asked the Court to limit Chichakli's additional disclosure of information from the Bout laptop to what was included in three specific previous disclosures already in the public domain.
Though there is no written order responding to this letter, the court docket indicates that it was endorsed by the Court. The notes indicate:

(1) The application for a Protective Order, was denied, but the Government was "directed to include an exception for documents that are in the public domain, without regard to who placed them there.
The Court declined to enter such a restrictive Protective Order, unless the restriction placed upon Chichakli, that he was limited to those three specific examples from which he could draw evidence, was eliminated, in favor of an exception for any documents in the public domain, regardless of who posted them.

(2) "The Government is directed to provide a further explanation regarding the necessity of including in the Protective Order documents relating to Chichakli's inclusion in the SDN* list."
Was the Court tactfully saying that the Government went too far in its request m? It is hard to say, but we will look closely at any amended request that follows.

The questions I have:
(A) What is there on Viktor Bout's laptop computer that the Government does not want to be publicly disclosed  by Chichakli ? Remember Bout's Russian attorneys are claiming he was the victim of Entrapment, but is there something else ?

 (B) Is the anything in the Rule 16 Discovery that might indicate that the now-known DEA use of NSA or CIA surveillance assets occurred, either in the Bout, or Chichakli, cases ?
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VIKTOR BOUT'S CONVICTION COULD BE REVERSED.


FROM THE - JOURNALS of Monte Friesner – Criminal & Intelligence Analyst and Consulaire for WANTED SA ~ Contributed & Written by Kenneth Rijock
WAS FAILURE TO DISCLOSE DEA SOD SURVEILLANCE TO VIKTOR BOUT'S ATTORNEYS A BRADY VIOLATION, AND WILL HIS CONVICTION BE REVERSED ?

The flap, about the  Drug Enforcement Administration's SOD, or Special Operations Division, which reportedly improperly used NSA and CIA intelligence, and his in by attributing it to other sources, may reach the Viktor Bout case.
Bout was convicted of conspiring to sell surface-to-air missiles to individuals whom he believed were members of the FARC, so that they could be used against American military targets in the Republic of Colombia.
Forget a minute about the entrapment defense, for frankly that doesn't fly unless the individual has no propensity for criminal conduct, and Mr. Bout broke weapons laws in more countries than you can count.
The problem is, he could conceivably have his conviction set aside, if newly discovered evidence shows that the DEA made the case, based upon NSA surveillance that was not disclosed in his criminal case.
For that we have to thank that smart soul over at DEA who had the bright idea to conceal that fact from the lawyers, prosecutors and judges in the cases that were developed through illegally-obtained evidence.
If Bout's conviction is set aside, those in command should be held accountable, and I would like to have their names, please, so that they don't get high-paying jobs in the private sector.
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