Stanford denies fraud, threatens interviewer

Allen Stanford, the Texan billionaire accused of a $9.2 billion fraud by U.S. regulators has denied any wrongdoing in a tearful interview in which he threatened to punch his questioner in the mouth. “I would die and go to hell if it’s a Ponzi scheme,” Stanford, ranked at no

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How to Spot a Ponzi Con Artist? Follow the Yachts

With so many Ponzis and so little time to know if you’ve been hoodwinked, there are some red flags even the most trusting investors can bank on: yachts, mansions, jets and women. If your investment adviser is dabbling in any of the above, there’s a good chance you’ve been “Ponzi-ed” or are about to be. Creating the illusion of fantastic success, of course, is chapter one in the Scammer’s Handbook.

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Stanford scandal spreads

Antiguan and Barbudan regulators Friday took control of U.S.financier Robert Allen Stanford’s financial institutions on the twin-island nation, a day after federal agents served the Texas businessman with papers accusing him of running an investment fraud scheme.

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Venezuela seizes Stanford-owned bank

Venezuela’s government seized a local bank owned by Allen Stanford Thursday as politicans and banking regulators in the region attempted to quell panic after the flamboyant Texan financier was charged over an alleged multibillion dollar fraud scheme. Customers in Latin America and the Caribbean have been queuing up or logging onto online banking services to withdraw money from institutions owned by the Stanford Group

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British couple, four children in cocaine bust, reports say

A British couple has been detained at Margarita Airport in Venezuela after 24 kilograms of cocaine was allegedly found in their luggage, according to press reports. “This bank does not have any problem, is a healthy financial institution,” Edgar Hernandez Behrens, Venezuela’s superintendent of banks, said of Stanford Bank Venezuela, the state-run ABN news agency reported. An estimated $2.5 billion to $3 billion has been invested in the bank, he said

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Stanford saga prompts run on banks

Politicians and banking regulators across Latin American and the Caribbean called for calm Wednesday after panicked investors pulled their money from banks owned by the Stanford Group, whose owner is accused in a multibillion dollar investment and sales fraud scheme.

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Indian hepatitis outbreak leaves 19 dead

Health officials in India’s Gujarat state are investigating a hepatitis outbreak that has left 19 people dead in less than two weeks, authorities said Wednesday. A statement on the official Web site of the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) www.ecb-co.uk confirmed that joint talks with the West Indies Cricket Board over a “new sponsorship deal” had been called off. Stanford backed a much-criticized $20 million winner takes all Twenty20 match between his all-star team and England in Antigua last November.

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