Headsup British intel having a crack at us

Ghislaine Maxwell court hearing disrupted by apparent QAnon followers

An unlawful live stream was viewed by numerous followers of the conspiracy theory before being shut down

A court proceeding on documents in civil litigation against the jailed British socialite and accused sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell was interrupted on Tuesday when the judge became aware of an unlawful live stream being viewed by numerous apparent followers of the QAnon conspiracy theory.

“Judge, I need to interrupt. I was just informed that apparently somebody is broadcasting this on to YouTube, so I don’t know if you want to give a reminder that that is illegal to do,” the deputy clerk told the Manhattan federal court judge Loretta Preska.

FBI tracked down Ghislaine Maxwell using cellphone data

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“Whoever is doing it, you are operating against the law,” Preska said of this stream, which attracted 14,000 listeners. “I suspect there is a way to find out. So I will ask you, most respectfully, to stop doing it.”

“We have had enough of lack of the rule of law around here. Let’s try to observe it.”

The stream shut down shortly thereafter.

The existence of a strong contingent of QAnon supporters listening in was based upon comments in a live chat that ran alongside the stream. The baseless, far-right conspiracy theory maintains that a cabal of Satan-worshipping Democrats and elites control the world while sex-trafficking children.

One commenter remarked, for example, “FREEE OUR CHILDREN NOW.” Another said: “PROTECT THE KIDS FROM THESE WEIRDOS”. There were also references to “National Popcorn Day”, which is a phrase widely used in QAnon circles.

The proceeding, which was held by telephone, was to discuss whether more documents in the Maxwell lawsuit would be unsealed. The public conference call line was full with hundreds of listeners, preventing many reporters from attending.

While Preska is releasing more documents in this litigation, some records involving Maxwell’s “intimate matters” will remain sealed, according to a transcript of the proceeding.

“Although the prurient interest of some may be left unsatiated as a result, Ms Maxwell’s interest in keeping private the details of her sexual relationships with consenting adults warrants the sealing of those portions of her testimony …” Preska said.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/jan/19/ghislaine-maxwell-court-proceeding-qanon

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British Virgin Islands to be Investigated for Corruption

Long considered one of the world’s most secretive financial jurisdictions, responsible for concealing hundreds of billions in illicit wealth coming in from abroad, the British Virgin Islands is now facing a wide-ranging probe into allegations of corruption within its own institutions and government.

British Virgin IslandsPhoto of Jost Van Dyke, one of the main islands in the British Virgin Islands. (Photo:User:Mattes, CC BY 2.0 DE, via Wikimedia Commons)An independent inquiry into the British overseas territory, launched on Monday with the support of the United Kingdom, will look into what U.K. Secretary of State Dominic Raab described as a “consistent and deeply troubling array of concerns.”

The allegations of graft include funds to support families during the pandemic being illicitly reallocated, public contracts being awarded without proper bidding, and reports of undue political influence over the appointment of government officials and the criminal justice process.

“There is a lack of transparency related to public funds, particularly related to the COVID-19 economic stimulus support,” said the BVI’s U.K.-appointed Governor Augustus Jaspert in a statement released on Facebook.

News of the forthcoming probe comes against the backdrop of what Jaspert described as an “infiltration of serious organized crime,” which was highlighted in November, when a US$250 million cocaine bust – potentially the largest seizure ever made by U.K. forces – implicated officers of the BVI police.

Governor Jaspert, who notified the U.K. government of the many allegations of corruption against the islands, also said the government has sought to silence officials, media, and community leaders “to such a degree that they describe living in a climate of fear,” according to Raab’s statement.

Local media previously reported that Jaspert had encountered trouble communicating with the public because his office has been given limited access to the government’s website.

“I would like to take a moment to tell the people of BVI that their voices have been heard,” Jaspert said, adding that “those who speak up are too often silenced.”

After a six-month investigation, a commission led by Sir Gary Hickinbottom will produce a report in which the U.K. and BVI will consider recommendations in a “constructive manner that best serves the people of BVI,” the U.K. included in its recent statement.

BVI Premier, Andrew Fahie, said his office “welcomed” a transparent commission of inquiry, and added that as stated by the Governor, “it would only be conducted based on facts and not rumors and unfounded allegations.”

As a British overseas territory, the BVI could have its right to self-government be suspended, as was the case for the Turks and Caicos islands in 2009 after similar complaints were made by its U.K. appointed governor.

BVI has long been heralded as one of the most financially secretive jurisdictions in the world.

Roughly half of the companies exposed by the Panama Papers were registered there, and a separate study by Transparency International uncovered that there were 1,107 BVI companies connected to cases of bribery, rigged procurement, embezzlement, and other financial crimes, amounting to hundreds of billions worth of funds stashed on the islands.

Alex Cobham, Chief Executive of the Tax Justice Network – which ranks the BVI first on its Corporate Tax Haven Index and 9th on the Financial Secrecy Index – wrote on Twitter that the U.K. has the ability “to impose any cleaning up measures necessary to end the corruption and the promotion of illicit flows.”

Even the possibility of such an outcome, he said, “may send a lot of the actors behind illicit financial flows running for another hideout.”

https://www.occrp.org/en/daily/13671-british-virgin-islands-to-be-investigated-for-corruption

Capital One to Pay $390m for Money Laundering Failures

An American bank will pay US$390 million for receiving proceeds connected to organized crime as a result of failing to enforce anti-money laundering and suspicious transactions measures.

CapitalOneHQ bodyCapital One headquarter, McLean, Virginia. (Photo: Wikimedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)The U.S. Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) announced on Friday the penalty against Capital One Corp. The bank admitted it had wilfully failed to maintain effective controls and acknowledged its negligence in filing Suspicious Activity Reports in a timely manner despite warnings and internal assessments.

As a result, billions of dollars went unreported through one of the lender’s control units between at least 2008 until 2014, allowing illicit funds linked to tax evasion, fraud, and other financial crimes to enter the U.S. financial system.

Among the high-risk customers handled by the unit was Domenick Pucillo, a convicted associate of the Genovese organized crime family and one of the largest check-cashers in the New York/New Jersey area.

According to FinCEN, Capital One was made aware of Pucillo’s involvement in criminal activities but failed to file suspicious activity reports concerning his accounts, negligently processing more than 20,000 transactions valued at approximately $160 million.

In May 2019, Pucillo pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit money laundering through loan sharking and illegal gambling proceeds that flowed through his holdings at Capital One.

The bank also admitted to negligently failing to file Currency Transaction Reports on roughly 50,000 reportable cash transactions, representing over $16 billion.

FinCEN’s Director, Kenneth A. Blanco, said the bank’s conduct had been in total disregard of its obligations under the Bank Secrecy Act.

“Capital One’s egregious failures allowed known criminals to use and abuse our nation’s financial system unchecked, fostering criminal activity and allowing it to continue and flourish at the expense of victims and other citizens,” Blanco said.

https://www.occrp.org/en/daily/13670-capital-one-to-pay-390m-for-money-laundering-failures

Leaked Affidavit Implicates Namibian President in Fishrot Scandal

Namibian President Hage Geingob allegedly played a role in a bribery scandal that has shaken the southern African nation, according to a leaked legal document.

The Fishrot Scandal came to light in 2019 after a whistleblower released more than 30,000 previously confidential documents via WikiLeaks (Credit: pxhere, Creative Commons Licence)The Fishrot Scandal came to light in 2019 after a whistleblower released more than 30,000 previously confidential documents via WikiLeaks (Credit: pxhere, Creative Commons Licence)Geingob’s name appears in an affidavit provided in April 2020 to the Namibian Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) by Marén de Klerk, a lawyer who in the document outlined his knowledge of the so-called “Fishrot scandal.”

Icelandic fisheries company Samherji is accused of paying bribes to top public officials in exchange for privileged access to the country’s resource-rich waters, according to a trove of more than 30,000 internal documents leaked by a former employee. Among those accused of accepting bribes are former justice minister Sackeus Shangala, and businessman James Hatuikulipi.

De Klerk alleged in the affidavit that Shangala and Hatuikulipi approached him for help setting up corporate structures to process donations from supporters of the ruling Swapo party, and that they told him the president had mandated the project.

Geingob had apparently become concerned about how poorly donations were being organized given the “dramatic” anticipated increase in funding during the run-up to elections, according to de Klerk’s 477-page statement, which was seen by OCCRP and its member center, The Namibian newspaper.

De Klerk told the ACC that the network of companies he helped set up was then used as a conduit for illicit payments allegedly made by Samherji to government officials, and was later used to direct funds for Geingob’s 2019 presidential campaign.

In the affidavit, the lawyer explains that he did not ask for details of “how much money I stood to make” from the scheme, but was told by the conspirators that his share would be in an amount resembling “telephone numbers.”

The former Samherji employee who leaked the Fishrot documents, Jóhannes Stefánsson, said he was happy to see more information about the scandal become public with de Klerk’s affidavit.

“Well-connected business people have profited at the expense of Namibia’s citizens,” he told OCCRP. “It’s unacceptable and it needs to change.”

Investigations by OCCRP and Finance Uncovered also found that Samherji avoided taxes by moving profits from its African operations through known tax havens like Cyprus and Mauritius. The Namibian newspaper identified 27 properties worth more than $2 million purchased by people involved in the scandal during the time the alleged corruption took place.

Samherji previously told OCCRP that it strenuously denied all allegations of wrongdoing. It described Stefánsson’s allegations as “false,” and said its tax arrangements in Namibia were much the same as those “used every day by businesses in every corner of the world.”

https://www.occrp.org/en/daily/13669-leaked-affidavit-implicates-namibian-president-in-fishrot-scandal

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9164707/Biden-cries-leaves-Delaware-fsaying-Beau-introducing-president.html

Desperation

crazy town has arrived………………….