Attorney General Steadroy Benjamin said the government will turn Leroy King over to US authorities to face fraud charges.
The announcement came on the heels of a decision by the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council on Monday morning.
“What I received was an advanced copy. In that order, the application on behalf of Mr. Leroy King was not upheld. It was dismissed”, Benjamin told state media.
King had been challenging an extradition warrant issued by Former Prime Minister Baldwin Spencer in 2012 in his capacity as Foreign Affairs Minister.
The warrant was issued following a formal request from US authorities for King to be extradited to the US to face fraud charges related to the seven billion US dollar Ponzi scheme carried out by former American financier and banker Allen Stanford.
King mounted several legal challenges to his extradition at all levels of the Antigua & Barbuda judicial system.
“So now that he has exhausted all the appeals to which he is entitled the Supreme Court of the land, the Privy Council has ruled, and the government is left with no other option but to comply with the order of the Privy Council”, said the Attorney General.
“The US Embassy in Barbados has been in contact with me and the government will carry out the effects of the order that was granted by the court”, Benjamin revealed.
“In other words, the order signed by the Prime Minister, Baldwin Spencer many years ago will take effect as and from the 6th of November in this year”, he said.
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Notes From A Native Son Of The Rock! “Oh Gad!” – Antigua’s Joanne Hillhouse: The Boy From Willow Bend!”
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Traitors!!!. They are no different from the people who betrayed prince klass. We all benefit from Stanford and we should not turnover Mr King to the USA. Tell the Americans to go to hell.
And who are you calling Traitors. Not this government I assume. Cause it was the inept UPP who presented the USA with everything about the Stanford Companies in Antigua and in doing so jeopardize the entire offshore financial sector. Secrecy was to be the hallmark of the Offshore sector. ultimately we are a sovereign state and therefore certain information should be confidential. Unless leaked like in the Panama Papers. But the UPP saw it as a way to get rid of Allen Stanford after all the man has done for them and the country. And in that Leroy is one of the local casualties. And who knows if he starts talking more will follow. I just wish him the best in his court case. Hopes he gets a very good lawyer, because that is what Allen Stanford has been denied. If he had a good lawyer he would not had spend one day in jail believe me. And to make matter worst, the ten PM Baldwin allowed for the head of the FSRC to go to the USA to give testimony against Mr. Stanford. Not realizing they were actually incriminating and exposing the entire country to law suits from the depositors from Stanford. Total ineptness.
LIAR. All Stanford’s bank accounts were held in the US, Switzerland, Europe and South America. Only operating accounts were held in his local bank here. Even the payroll account was banked in Mississippi. If you were really a Stanford staff you would know this.
That head of FSRC was the same person that warned the then ALP government that if they allow Stanford to fund and staff the IBC registry (FSRC predecessor) it would destroy the Financial offshore sector as Stanford would have been de facto regulator and competitor – examining the books of his competitors while simultaneously operating his offshore bank. This was a case of the rat watching the cheese. It was Stanford that destroyed that sector not the US.
While you are spreading lies to protect criminals and criminality don’t forget that that same FSRC head was only put back in charge of the FSRC AFTER the crook Leroy was indicted as Stanford did not rest until she was forced to resign in 2002. So yes the ALP betrayed its own and sold all the other hundreds of offshore banks up the river in favour of Stanford our lord and savior.
You are such a sad case. You know so little and with the little you know you try to distort that little truth as well. Every Offshore Bank has offshore accounts. An offshore bank is just that. It holds the accounts of its depositors offline. And yes the bank may only have an operating account at a local bank because it cannot pay its local creditors any other way. But Stanford also owned a local bank and in that local bank BOA he kept a large amount of his personal monies in order to ensure the bank had enough capital to extend credits to first his Development Company, but also to comply by ECCB regulations as to the ratios of Loans vs. Deposits.
And since you know little about the entire setting up of the FSRC you should know that Stanford single-handed finance the entire operation. As no other offshore bank wanted to put their money where their mouth is. They all agreed that this body was needed and that we needed an Act to govern it. Stanford hire and paid for ex US Custom Officers and DEA officers to write the Act in compliance with Antigua and Intentional Laws. He paid for the office at the Wood Branch. All the Living expenses from those high powered lawyers and staff. And when the work was finished it was presented to the Lester Bird Government. Thereafter Stanford briefly had to take the position of Chairman of the Board until Ms. A. Crick was hired. And yes Ms. Crick and Stanford did not have a good working relationship from the start but that is something else. And her going to testify was also an acknowledgement on her part that the commission did not do a good job. and by extension the government was exposed to law suits. So please do not call me a liar when you yourself have no clue of what you are talking about. Stanford biggest account was at TDB. And you never mentioned that. Althea is considered a friend to me and my wife and I will not speak ill of her. Especially not after her death. May she rest in peace. But the UPP killed the entire industry that had such good paying jobs. And created many highly trained and skilled workers. 90% of them left Antigua after the collapse of the group. You have some still around, being highly qualified yet no job according to their training. So bad they have to take up other professions in order to survive. You have people I know are licensed Trustees. Having completed the STEP program Cum Laude. The UPP was and still is a disaster to Antigua and Barbuda. They never thought through any of their actions. Not even what it would mean going into an IMF program.
Amen! Go face the music with your blood brother Alan.
Interesting developments, and the way Mr. Benjamin keeps repeating that this order which was signed by Hon Baldwin Spencer years ago, says a lot.
Is Mr. Benjamin saying that Spencer in his wisdom (probable meditation) saw this coming (prophesied), hence, no reason(s) and waste of finances to fight it but just to sign it?
When we shoot ourselves in the eye! No matter your answer to the question above, fighting this, and lingering wasting tax payers money says a lot about non meditating people in high positions.
It is not for the government to fight an extradition. The government is their to execute a court order. Know your system of government. They cannot defy a court order or they will be held in contempt of court themselves and they will be put in jail. Leroy had a long battle which he knew he would lose in the end. What he perhaps had hoped is that the USA would have lost interest in him. Just like in the case of Mr. Cooper. When he was finally arrested in Barbados the American let him go as they said not to have interest in him any longer. Lets pray for Leroy that something good will happen.
Lard, where is the sense of right and wrong when a crime is committed? He committed a crime! Stop been loyal to party and play dumb to the process. He committed a crime. Point blank. He needs to serve the time! We point fingers to parties but not to Leroy King bank accounts….
Nameless, how you know that he committed a crime?
as per our Attorney General Steadroy Benjamin said the government will turn Leroy King over to US authorities to face fraud charges.. for starters.
HE is facing 11 wire and mail fraud charges.
Do you really believe if there wasn’t a case against this small fish in the pond the USA would be coming after him. I am not even going to mention all the attempts he has been making to avoid going into their hands.
And bu the way, Stanford is lock up because he is innocent as well??!!! Please send his behind over there so they can deal with him the same way they dealt with Stanford.
Set a dam scoundrels Since you are so sure there is no evidence against him and his buddy Stanford you should provide them to their lawyers..
The SEC charged Leroy King, the administrator and chief executive officer of Antigua’s Financial Services Regulatory Commission, for accepting thousands of dollars per month in bribes to ignore the Stanford Ponzi scheme and supply Stanford himself with confidential information about the SEC’s investigation. King obstructed the SEC’s case since 2005, when its investigation into Stanford began.
Still say there was no crime ??? There are many of our brothers and sister on this island who are still waiting on the return of their money that was stolen from them.
Tell me , who suffers in a Ponzi scheme? Sure as hell was not Stanford and Leroy King just to name a few!
Is Leroy King a US citizen and where did he commit the alleged crime? If he is an Antiguan citizen and committed the alleged crime in Antigua then why is he being sent to the US? If the situation were reversed would the US extradite it’s citizen to Antigua or would it’s citizen be tried in the Us?
Doubt Leroy King would get a fair trial in the USA. For one, can he afford the lawyers.
Mr. King better get ready to sing like a swallow if he wants to avoid spending the rest of his life in a federal pen. Mr. King, give up all those ALP names you have in your little black book.
…Shake! Shake! Shake!
…’tis, a rotted Tree
…the tea leaves
…they have being shaken
…as they shimmy
…Down! Down! Down!
…to, the ground
…covering, the skeleton’s bones
.. as, their rotted flesh
…reveals, the ash
…it is, Epstein or Ashe?
…Oh gosh! Oh Gosh! Oh Gosh!
…as this Nation
…because of, this shituation
…is about to get some more
…harsh, Lash! Lash! Lash!
…but, in the blink of, said Third Eye
…he could just, Die! Die! Die!
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