FAT CRIMINAL PRETENDS TO BE MUSIC PRODUCER

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

 

CAREER CRIMINAL LIVED A LIFE OF LUXURY IN MIAMI UNTIL ARREST
 

Recently released from Federal Prison, the career white-collar fraudster lived the Miami Vice high life this summer; He stayed at several Miami luxury hotels, leaving behind unpaid bills that total $275,000 when he skipped out, only to vicitimize the next hotel. How did this happen ?

 

James Sabatino, with a number of Federal criminal convictions on his record, posed as a business executive for some of the entertainment industry's largest companies. using the alias "James Sabat," the fraudster obtained luxury accommodations at several Miami-area hotels, asking that the bills be placed on his purported company's tab.

 

While staying in luxury suites, Sabatino, who was at all times wanted by the law on other charges, reportedly ordered over $100,000 in high-end champagne, some of which was seized from his vehicle after his arrest, while staying at the most expensive rooms these hotels had to offer.

 

 Exactly how did this fraudster pull this off ?

 

(1) He showed up during the summer, the slow season for Florida hotels, when they welcome all the business that comes in the door with open arms.

 

(2) He went to hotels where his "employers" had previously booked rooms, and had current payment arrangements with the hotels for direct billing of accommodations charges. He had some prior experience in that industry, and was familiar with its policies and practices.

 

(3) Entertainers, and executives at prestigious entertainment companies, who spent extravagantly at hotels, are very desirable guests. They are also very demanding, colorful personalities, whose residence is thought by the hotels to raise their prestige, and therefore the demand by non-celebrities to stay there.

 

What did the hotels not do, and which, in my humble opinion, is compliance malpractice?

 

(A) Check with the "employers" to verify that "Sabat" was an executive authorized to stay there at company expense.

 

 (B) Check out the guest online; if you have someone's Florida driver's license, you can run the number through the Florida Department of Highway Safety, and  see if it is valid. If it is a fake, that's the biggest red flag you might ever see as a hotelier. If Sabatino gave his real license to the desk clerk, and it checks out, you then google that name.

 

Sabatino has been in prison several times, and once was charged with threatening the life of then-President Clinton,  and several Federal Judges, and threatened to blow up a courthouse in Fort Lauderdale.

 

All this would have been found, if the clerk had only done a minimal amount of research. he appears to be linked to organized crime, in both New York and Florida.

 

At five feet six inches tall, and 365 pounds, this fraudster does not fit the profile of a successful executive, but he picked the entertainment industry as his alleged employer, for it is known to have  many unconventional characters in its ranks.

 

The moral of the story: every business must perform a minimum of due diligence on its customers, lest it suffer a painful loss, as well as reputation damage, when the fraud becomes public. 

 

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PONZI SCHEMER R ALLEN STANFORD WILL REPRESENT HIMSELF ON TRIAL

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

 

 
FIFTH CIRCUIT ALLOWS STANFORD TO PROCEED PRO SE, ALLOWS HIM SIX MONTHS TO FILE BRIEF
 
Convicted Ponzi schemer extraordinaire, the former banker, R Allen Stanford, has been granted the right to represent himself in his Fifth Circuit appeal.

He asked that his court-appointed counsel be removed, and that he be allowed to proceed Pro Se; Stanford does not have any formal legal education.

The Court gave him six months, until March 18, 2014, to file his initial brief, so don't expect this appeal to be decided anytime soon.

 

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CHINA LAUNDERS MONEY FROM HAMAS

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

HAMAS MONEY LAUNDERER USED BANKS IN CHINA

Buried in Middle East news this week is the story of the arrest of a West Bank Palestinian money launderer who made illicit payments to Hamas operatives, some of whom were serving time in Israeli prisons. It is noteworthy that he reportedly used banks in China to transfer funds.

 

Add that to the lawsuit, reported here last year, about the terrorist financing lawsuit filed in the United States, that alleges major Chinese banks are deeply involved in money laundering for Hamas.

 

Regarding that case, it has been reported that the Government of China has brought pressure upon Israel not to cooperate.

 

This is extremely disturbing, as it indicates that there is a factual basis for the suit, and that its disclosure will further erode the poor record of Chinese banks on AML/CFT issues.

 

How extensive is the role of Chinese banks in terrorist financing and money laundering for designated Middle East terrorist organizations, and should this not be grounds to raise Country Risk for China ?  Risk levels are already elevated, due to the generally uncontrolled activities of corrupt Chinese PEPs, who are able to move their ill-gotten gains overseas, into Western banks, with little interference from Chinese authorities.

 

Adding terrorist financing threats to the equation only makes transactions with Chinese banks more high-risk.

 

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PALESTINA IS NOT A SOVEREIGN STATE

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

COUNTRIES THAT RECOGNIZE THE "STATE OF PALESTINE" COULD BE UNWITTINGLY FACILITATING MONEY LAUNDERING OR TERRORIST FINANCING

Since last year, a number of governments have opened diplomatic relations with Palestine. A large bribe was reportedly paid to a senior Haitian government official recently, to facilitate the Republic of Haiti's official recognition of the "State of Palestine."

 

Grenada also recognized Palestine, but whether illicit payments were made for that act, I do not know. While such diplomatic recognition is largely symbolic, because the Palestinian Authority is not a sovereign state, there are real financial crime consequences that you need to be aware of.

 

All agreements between countries that establish diplomatic relations are bound by the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, which provides that "the Diplomatic Bag shall not be opened or detained" by any government.

 

Considering that many senior officials of the Palestinian Authority have been involved in corrupt activities for decades, from the late Chairman Arafat on down the chain of command, you can expect that this new "opportunity," to smuggle cash or financial instruments out of, or into, the Palestinian Territory, will be exploited.

 

Since customs at either end of the pipeline will not touch diplomatic bags, it is a risk-free prescription for criminal activity.

 

Diplomatic relations can provide a suitable cover for the quiet transfer of large amounts of money into the hands of corrupt or criminal West Bank PEPs, as well as electronics components useful for terrorist operations.

 

By recognizing a non-existent state, those nations who have established diplomatic links have unwittingly facilitated the covert movement of money which can be used to fund terrorist actions. Any banks that open accounts for diplomatic missions of the State of Palestine are taking on an unacceptable level of risk.

 

 

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MORE TIME FOR PONZI SCHEMER SCOTT ROTHSTEIN'S WIFE

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

JUDGE GRANTS PONZI SCHEMER'S WIFE A FINAL DELAY IN SENTENCING, BUT WARNS HER SHE WILL SERVE TIME

Convicted Ponzi schemer Scott Rothstein's wife, Kimberly Wendell Rothstein, who has asked, for a third time, to delay her sentencing, so that she may testify in a related trial, had her wish granted, but she probably did not like what the District Judge added to the Order, which granted her a final continuance until November 12th.

 

A fair reading of the Order : even if she provides Substantial Assistance to the Government in the upcoming (and oft-delayed) trial, she's going to prison, and not on probation or house arrest (home confinement), if that was her objective.

 

Allow me to quote from the Order:

 

"Although the Court has no opinion on what Defendants' sentences in this case will be, Probation's initial calculation of the Advisory Sentencing guidelines range reflects a range that includes substantial jail time, even on the low end.

 

Thus, while the Court does not preclude any type of sentence at this time, it does not appear now that sentencing Defendants* before the other trial occurs will result in Defendants' spending time in prison that they otherwise would not. "Order at 2.

 

The Court went on to say that the Defendants could raise this issue at sentencing if they still have concerns, if the other case is again delayed.
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 * She has a co-defendant, her close friend, Stacie Weinstein, See my earlier articles for details.

 

 

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JOSE CLEOGAS MOSQUERA HURTADO COMMANDER OF THE FARC 57 IS A PANAMANIAN NATIONAL

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

COLOMBIA SAYS FARC 57 FRONT IS NOW COMMANDED BY A PANAMANIAN

The Ministers of Defense and Security of Colombia, at a news conference, have disclosed that the commander of the FARC 57 Front, which operates in the area of the frontier between Colombia and the Republic of Panama, is a Panamanian national.

 

José Cleogás Mosquera Hurtado, alias "El Pana" is a former member of the Armed Forces of Panama who deserted in 1989, during the American invasion.

 

He was reportedly placed in command of 57 Front after the recent death of its leader in an engagement with the Armed Forces of Colombia.

 

The FARC 57 Front is notorious in Colombia, in part due to its ongoing tactics of kidnapping civilians for ransom. Hurtado was involved in a number of such kidnappings for profit, as well as participating in FARC operations that resulted in the forced enlistment of children as soldiers. Both of these activities have been condemned as war crimes in Colombia. Hurtado is also accused of narcotics trafficking.

 

The 57 Front, which is believed to number approximately 250 soldiers and support staff, operates on both sides of the border with Panama.

 

Captured communications indicate that it uses Panamanian banks for its financial transactions, which include arms purchases and narcotics sales.

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VIKTOR BOUT'S APPEAL DISMISSED

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

VIKTOR BOUT'S CONVICTION IS AFFIRMED BY THE SECOND CIRCUIT 

The Second Circuit Court of Appeals, the Federal appellate court that heard Viktor Bout's appeal of his criminal conviction, has affirmed the trial court's verdict. The three-judge panel  dismissed all the arguments Bout's counsel made in his brief, and in oral argument.

 

Here is the essence of the court's ruling, taken verbatim from the decision:

 

(1) In the absence of actual animus, or shocking conduct akin to coercion, or a violation of Defendant's person, an international sting operation, of the kind undertaken in this case, this case, does not  constitute either vindictive prosecution or outrageous government conduct.

 

(2) Government application of "coercive political pressure" on a foreign government, to secure a defendant's extradition, does not make that defendant's prosecution improper.

 

(3) The District Court correctly rejected defendant's claim that his prosecution violated the Doctrine of Specialty*.

 

(4) The Indictment sufficiently charged defendant with conspiracy to murder United States nationals, and conspiracy to murder United States officers and employees, notwithstanding that the Indictment did not refer explicitly to murder.

 

The Court did find a clerical error in the judgment, and has remanded the case back to the District court for the limited purpose of correcting that error, but for no other reason.

Mr. Bout's attorney reportedly has stated that he intends to ask the entire Second Circuit bench to hear the case, though he did not disclose any further details.

 

He has, in the past, said that he intends to take this case to the US Supreme Court, if and as necessary, but such an action, which is not an appeal as a matter of right, but a petition for a Writ of Certiorari, which is discretionary with the high court, is rarely successful.

 

Readers who wish to review the complete text of the decision can find it on the Second Circuit website:
http://www.ca2.uscourts.gov/ Go to "Decisions" on that page. The date of the ruling was September 27, 2013. Alternatively, Findlaw has published the decision:
http://caselaw.findlaw.com/us-2nd-circuit/1645550.html .
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 * A defendant may only be prosecuted for the crimes which he or she has been extradited for.

 

 

 



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