平台严格禁止发布违法/不实/欺诈等垃圾信息，一经发现将永久封禁帐号，针对违法信息将保留相关证据配合公安机关调查！
2012-3-12 20:14
In an interview outside his office, Harold Lovell, Antigua's finance minister, said, 'We have suffered tremendously as a result of this entire episode.'
'A skilled conman can pull the wool over just about anybody's eyes,' added Karen de Freitas-Rait, a member of the board of directors of Antigua's Financial Services Regulatory Commission. In addition to losing its chief benefactor, Antigua has found itself facing lawsuits, as well as a crisis of confidence from the international community, where some say it deserves a share of the blame. Antigua is beginning to unwind its dealings with Mr. Stanford and more than 20 entities he operated. Mr. Lovell said the government has addressed issues 'where there may have been failings.' Yet to many members of the working class in Antigua, a nation of roughly 90,000 people whose average per-capita gross domestic product is half that of the U.S., Mr. Stanford got a raw deal. 'It is just a pity,' said Yvonne Destin, as she set up her stand in a bustling part of town selling T-shirts and hats. Her stand is surrounded by a branch of the former Bank of Antigua, once owned by Mr. Stanford, and a plot of land where he planned to build a multistory office. 'I'm so sorry they are going to lock him up. He was a really good, important man,' she said. Mr. Stanford's attorney, Mr. Scardino, said it was obvious from testimony that Mr. Stanford 'was important on the island' of Antigua. 'My goodness, he was poised to do a lot for them and he did a lot for them,' Mr. Scardino said. 'He gave a lot of people jobs. The infrastructure he was putting on the island would have developed with roads and bridges. The tourism he would have brought in would have been huge had he been able to complete the project.' Some islanders said they were victims. 'I hope he has to stay over there' in the U.S., said Leiprecht Heiduun, 65, an island tour guide, who said she lost pension money as a result of the collapse. But many others are forgiving of Mr. Stanford. At a marketplace near where tourists flock from cruise ships to buy souvenirs, some of the salespeople said they cried when they heard the news of his conviction. 'If he stole from the rich, he gave it to the poor,' Nathalie Massicott, 62, said. Mr. Stanford in 2008 paid out $20 million in prize money to the winners of a single cricket match in Antigua. It was one of the highest-profile events ever on the cricket-loving island, bringing excitement and pride to islanders. Although Mr. Stanford was considered rich─Forbes in 2008 estimated his wealth at $2.2 billion ─ he was seen by the working classes as a friend of Antigua as he laid out his vision for the island over the past two decades. People shared stories of his frequenting local shops. Gaston Browne, a political leader, said Mr. Stanford fell 'prey to his own ambitions,' but he also could 'understand the sympathy that would be paid to him.' As Sandra Walker, 53, served food on the street in St. John's, she called Mr. Stanford, 'Robin Hood to the West Indies.' Ms. Walker, recalling when Mr. Stanford would come into a store that she once ran, said the accusations against him were a 'shock,' but added that 'if you do commit a crime, you should do the time.' Copyright (c) 2012 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. 斯坦福(R. Allen Stanford)上周被定罪，罪名是策划一桩71亿美元的庞氏骗局，由此确定了他作为史上最出名的公司罪犯之一的地位。
Steve Eder/The Wall Street Journal德斯廷(Yvonne Destin)在城中一个繁忙的街区搭着贩卖T恤衫和帽子的小摊。她的摊位周围是前安提瓜银行的一个分支机构和一片斯坦福原计划建造办公楼的空地。但在他的第二祖国安提瓜和巴布达，人们对他的事情的看法仍存在深刻的分歧。 接近三年前，美国检方控告斯坦福利用自己名下一家位于安提瓜的银行辅助一桩投资骗局。到现在，这个加勒比岛国的政府官员仍在艰难地应付此事造成的经济后果。 但安提瓜很多老百姓仍将斯坦福视为民族英雄，一个罗宾汉式的人物，认为他的财富和慷慨给一个贫困人口众多的国家带来了好处。 这位美国得克萨斯人于2006年在安提瓜被封为骑士，他是这个国家最大的私人雇主，拥有强大的影响力。斯坦福有一个多元化企业集团，旗下曾有航空公司、银行、餐馆和该国最大的报纸。即便现在，他的名字还出现在安提瓜的“斯坦福板球广场”(Stanford Cricket Ground)上方，这是他在10年前花了几百万美元修起来的。安提瓜银行(Bank of Antigua)一度为斯坦福所有，后来被一家地区性银行接管。 斯坦福律师之一斯卡尔迪诺(Robert Scardino Jr.)说，很多人喜欢他。斯卡尔迪诺提到，斯坦福给安提瓜的慈善事业捐献了数千万美元，另外还曾给政府贷款数百万美元，同时还撑起了当地一家银行。斯卡尔迪诺说，斯坦福的愿景要是得以实现，将会给所有人带来巨大的经济利益。 2009年，美国检方和证券交易委员会(Securities and Exchange Commission)控告斯坦福捏造高额回报，以吸引全世界投资者从安提瓜斯坦福国际银行(Stanford International Bank Ltd.)购买虚假存单。他被控侵占投资者数十亿美元资金，并将部分所得投资于他控制的企业。 检方在他接受审判时声称，他曾通过行贿安提瓜一位监管人员和一位外部审计师掩盖自己谋划的骗局。检方说，斯坦福和安提瓜监管人员金(Leroy King)曾用“血誓”来掩盖他们的犯罪合作。金的一位律师拒绝置评。 斯坦福被控以14桩与洗钱和实施庞氏骗局相关的罪名，美国一个联邦陪审团上周一判决其中13项罪名成立。斯坦福的律师说他准备上诉。 斯坦福帝国的坍塌对安提瓜来说是一个沉重打击。斯坦福拥有美国和安提瓜双重国籍，而且仍然是安提瓜最大的业主之一。安提瓜领导人说，这个前英国殖民地可能要用一代人的时间才能恢复形象、理顺各种商业交易并完全复苏。斯坦福的高级餐厅“Pavilion”已经关闭，另一家餐厅“Sticky Wicket”由新的管理层运营。 安提瓜财政部长洛弗尔(Harold Lovell)在办公室外接受采访时说，我们因为这整件事而遭受了严重损害。 安提瓜金融服务监管委员会(Antigua's Financial Services Regulatory Commission)理事Karen de Freitas-Rait说，一个诡计多端的骗子能够骗过几乎任何人的眼睛。 除失去了最大的赞助人外，安提瓜还发现自己面临着多起法律诉讼，在国际社会中也面临信任危机。一些人说安提瓜在此事中负有一定的责任。 安提瓜开始不再与斯坦福和他所运营的20多家实体打交道。洛弗尔说，安提瓜政府一直在解决可能存在失误的各种问题。 然而，对安提瓜的很多工人阶级成员来说，斯坦福受到了不公平的对待。这个国家人口约有9万，人均国内生产总值(GDP)约相当于美国的一半。 德斯廷(Yvonne Destin)在城中一个繁忙的街区搭着贩卖T恤衫和帽子的小摊。她说，这很遗憾。她的摊位周围是前安提瓜银行的一个分支机构和一片斯坦福原计划建造办公楼的空地。斯坦福曾拥有安提瓜银行。 她说，我很遗憾他们将把他关起来，他曾是个非常好、非常重要的人。 斯坦福的代理律师斯卡尔迪诺说，从证词中可以明显看出，斯坦福在安提瓜岛上很重要。 斯卡尔迪诺说，我的天，他原本将为那里的人做很多事，而且他也确实为他们做了很多事。他使很多人有了工作。他在该岛计划建造的基础设施原本会发展起来，会建造道路和桥梁。假如他能够完成这个项目的话，他将为该岛带来的旅游业规模会很大。 一些岛民说，他们是受害者。65岁的岛上导游海顿(Leiprecht Heiduun)说，我希望他不得不呆在美国。她说，由于这件事，她失去了退休金。 不过，其他很多人对斯坦福表示原谅。在从游船上蜂拥而至的游客购买纪念品的集市附近，一些商贩说，当听到他被定罪的消息时，他们哭了。 62岁的马斯考特(Nathalie Massicott)说，他劫富济贫。 2008年，斯坦福向在安提瓜举办的一场板球比赛的获胜者共发放了2,000万美元奖金。这是这个热爱板球运动的岛上有史以来知名度最高的活动之一，让岛民们既激动又骄傲。 尽管斯坦福被认为很富有（2008年据《福布斯》(Forbes)估计，他的财富有22亿美元），过去20年他为安提瓜岛制定愿景时，被工人阶级视为是安提瓜的朋友。人们纷纷讲述他经常光顾当地店铺的故事。 政治领袖布朗(Gaston Browne)说，斯坦福成了自己雄心壮志的牺牲品，但他也可以理解人们对斯坦福的同情。 53岁的沃克(Sandra Walker)在圣约翰的街道上卖食品。她称斯坦福是西印度群岛的罗宾汉。 沃克回忆起斯坦福光顾她曾经开的一家店的情形。她说，对他的指控令她震惊，但她也说，如果确实犯了罪，就该蹲监狱。 STEVE EDER （本文版权归道琼斯公司所有，未经许可不得翻译或转载。） |