Stanford Takes Fifth in SEC Civil Case over Alleged $8B Fraud
After a former chief investment officer for the Stanford Financial Group at least arguably said too much in testimony before the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, chairman and sole shareholder R. Allen Stanford isn’t going to make the same mistake.
In an affidavit included in a federal court filing today by the SEC in Dallas, he takes the Fifth, reports Bloomberg: “I hereby assert my privilege against self-incrimination under the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and decline to testify or provide an accounting, and will continue to decline to testify, provide an accounting or produce any documents,” Stanford states in the March 9 document.
The SEC filing concerns a planned hearing tomorrow on an asset freeze in the civil case, notes the Stanford Watch blog of the Houston Chronicle.
Additional coverage:
London Times: “Allen Stanford refuses to co-operate with fraud investigators”
Houston Chronicle: “More Stanford funds may soon be set free”
ABAJournal.com: “Amended SEC Complaint Accuses Stanford, CFO of Running Ponzi Scheme”
ABAJournal.com: “Stanford Official Charged With Lying to SEC Testified Without Her Own Lawyer”
