COViSAL
For Justice & Restitution
_______________________________________
For a fistful of dollars two gangs continue to fleece innocent
families
Wednesday, November 18, 2015
• Jaime Escalona speaking on behalf of COViSAL denounces millions of dollars in fees, and the fleecing of thousands of innocent families.
•
What’s been recovered by the US Receiver and Joint Liquidators during
almost 7 years, goes to pay exorbitant attorneys’ fees and expenses.
Until
now, the only ones benefiting from the receivership and the liquidation of the
Stanford Financial Group (“SFG”) and the Stanford International Bank Limited
(“SIBL”), are the attorneys and their professionals. “It appears that they are
purposely prolonging the legal process and litigation to continue generating
millions of dollars in fees for themselves until the creditor’s patrimony is
depleted," affirms Jaime Escalona, founder and leader of COViSAL, an
international coalition of depositors who lost their life-savings with
Stanford.
The
US Receiver, Ralph Janvey, shows $75.1 million dollars spent in professional
fees and expenses as of May 31, 2014 in his 8th application for fees and
expenses registered before the US Federal Court in Dallas, Texas. The Joint
Liquidators, Marcus Wide & Hugh Dickson of Grant Thornton (“JLs”),
presented their 6th Report before the High Court of Antigua that
shows $43.8 million dollars spent on professional fees and expenses.
Fistful of money
Escalona
points out, that as of May 31, 2014, "the Receiver has recovered $263.7
million. However, he has collected $160.2 million in expenses and attorney's
fees, not including the last 18 months - that’s over 60% of the total amount
'recovered' from Stanford’s bank accounts and fire sale of assets, leaving only
meager sums for the victims.”
Recipients
of the loot in the U.S.
$71.8
million
Received
by the U. S. Receiver and his attorneys.
$2.5
million
Received
by Stanford’s Examiner
$800,000
thousand
Charged
by the Investor’s Committee.
$55.1
million
Charged
for other expenses
“The
Receivership’s attorneys and professionals have been very well compensated
during the last six and a half years for the work they have performed.
Unfortunately, they have not shown real accomplishments to deserve their $600
per hour fees. They have received more
money than the victims - many of them pocketing millions of dollars while the victims
have barely received a penny on the dollar.” Mr. Escalona explains.
In Antigua
According
to the record presented to the High Court of Justice of Antigua & Barbuda
on November 11, 2014, the Joint Liquidators (JLs) reported a total receipt
balance of $109.5 million dollars. However, from this total the JLs have
already spent $43.8 million in fees for attorneys, consultants and other
expenses. So far they have spent over 40% of the total, without taking into
account their fees for the last 11 months.
SIBL’s
JLs recovered $8.1 million from the sale of Stanford’s assets in Antigua, and
received $95.6 million from the frozen funds in England, belonging to
Stanford’s depositors.
Escalona
affirms that “JLs are spending at least $1 million monthly; and now are going
after innocent families to deny them of their 1 penny on the dollar
distribution which was announced over a year ago, and keeping the $25 million
withheld from depositors to possibly use for their fees and expenses.”
Fistful of money
“JLs
Marcus Wide and Hugh Dickson have received more than $8.3 million, their
Co-lead legal advisor $12 million, and other unnamed legal advisors $16
million,” says Escalona.
“We
would like the unnamed law firms to be identified, and would like to see the detailed
invoices of their work, as well as the invoices of all the payments issued,”
Escalona adds.
Recipients of the loot in Antigua
$8.3 million
Payment
received by the Joint Liquidators, Marcus Wide and Hugh Dickson of Grant
Thornton.
$12.0 million
Payment
received by co-lead attorney
$16.0 million
Payment
for other legal advisers
$7.9 million
Payment
for other expenses
$25.0
million
Withheld
from innocent families accused of receiving preferential payments; most likely
will be use by JLs to pay for their fees and expenses.
Rightful
owner’s share
$0.01
cent
on the dollar received by some depositors.
Easy prey, once again
On
May 15, 2014 the High Court of Antigua issued an order appointing an Amicus
Curiae due to the Joint Liquidator’s application to claw back alleged Net
Winners and Preference Creditors. More than a year later, on August 5, 2015,
Mr. Justice Gerhard Wallbank sided with the Joint Liquidators by issuing an
order that allows the Joint Liquidators to pursue claims against depositors
considered Preferential Payment Recipients. “The majority of depositors accused
of receiving alleged preference payments withdrew some of their savings
deposited at SIBL for living expenses, rightfully and in good will,” says Mr.
Escalona.
“It
is obvious that the Joint Liquidators are going to withhold the $25 million
distribution from innocent families until they file suit against them and win
the case. These families will not be able to defend themselves in court because
they do not have money to hire an attorney, and most likely the JLs will win
their cases. It is another tactic to prolong the suffering of depositors and
keep this money for the continuation of self-enriching interests,” explains Mr.
Escalona.
SFG and SIB administrators have secured their job for
years
“The
reality is that injustice continues for these victims as the U.S. Receiver and
the Joint Liquidators insatiably persist in generating fees and expenses for
themselves, their attorneys, and other professionals, the sole beneficiaries so
far, charging millions of dollars during the past 7 years,” observes Mr.
Escalona.
“We
have not seen any meaningful efforts towards a real recovery for the victims
and the accomplishments in the recollections of assets for the depositor’s
distribution fund have been lacking. The Joint Liquidators and the US Receiver
are just using the money confiscated in England and Canada to pay themselves
and their colleagues, while forcing victims through a gauntlet for a pittance,”
Mr. Escalona remarks.
Reality check
Mr. Escalona comments, “It seems that our never-ending saga
is being prolonged by design, to generate fees and expenses for attorneys and
professionals responsible for the Stanford Case. We find it deplorable that
Courts in the United States and in Antigua have allowed the U.S. Receiver and
the Joint Liquidators, who were named to prevent the waste and squandering of
the creditors' patrimony, to continue consuming it at an alarming rate.”
Depositors’
Demands
According to the order appointing John Little as Stanford’s
Examiner on April 20, 2009, he was appointed by the Court to convey information
which the Examiner determines would be helpful to the Court in considering the
interests of investors, and conduct such investigation as he deems necessary to
provide such information to the Court. Also, on August 11, 2010 the Court
approved the creation of a seven member Investor Committee, including the
Examiner and six other members, representing a cross-section of the Stanford
Investors, to provide additional opportunities for investors to participate in
the activities of the Receivership.
Mr. Escalona says, “We exhort Stanford’s Examiner and the
Official Stanford Investors Committee, which represents all Stanford investors’
interests worldwide, to voice our outcry and concerns expressed in this letter
to the Courts and other authorities responsible for the Stanford Case. You have
a fiduciary duty to the Stanford’s depositors and your decisions and actions must
be carried out in consideration of the best interests of the creditor’s
patrimony.”
The U.S. Receiver and the Joint Liquidators, were named to
conserve, hold, manage, and prevent any waste of the creditors' patrimony, and
return the money to the innocent families. The extended protraction of the
recovery of assets and the very small settlements are generating high billable
hours and expenses to the administrators and their attorney, to the detriment
of Stanford’s depositors.
“We demand clarity, transparency, integrity and fairness, and
an end to a self-serving economic interest that irrationally pursues control
over the assets, wasting what is recovered of our patrimony. Control of the
money cannot be the driving force to bring justice and equity to thousands of
innocent families left in poverty and desperation,” comments Mr. Escalona.
Mr.
Escalona concludes, “The $200 million left of our savings which were
confiscated in Switzerland must be distributed directly to Stanford’s
depositors, otherwise, the US Receiver and JLs will squander the money to pay
themselves. They have not made any significant distributions as of yet, just a
couple of pennies on the dollar.”
“What honest and transparent legal entity is providing
oversight of the liquidation’s and receivership’s affairs? Where are the check
and balances? Are our fundamental rights being considered?” asks Mr. Escalona.
“We insist that U.S. and Antiguan Courts show the world their
commitment to honesty, equality and justice with concrete and immediate actions.
Innocent families in the US, Latin America, and around the world, have the
right to a full restitution of their savings.
In God we trust that the rights of the victims will prevail
over judicial manipulations, and that good conscience will be the instrument to
impart justice and to stop a never-ending fraud.”
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