Sunday, August 24, 2008

The successful outcome of the legal proceedings concerning the US allegations against Mr. Jacob Agam

An interview with Dr. Andreas Vogel

Legal proceedings regarding Crissi Foundation ("Crissi") and Horeb Holdings Inc. ("Horeb"), two dissolved entities which were beneficially owned by Mr. Agam. The legal proceedings were terminated with orders of the Liechtenstein Court of Justice dated 26 June 2007 (enclosed to my telefax of today). As to the history and the background of the legal I talked with Mr. Agams lawyer - Dr. Andreas Vogel:


What was the origin of the accusation against Mr. Agam?

In December 2004 John Marciano and Robert Oosterwyck were indicted before the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York in connection with the Xybernaut IPO. The indictment accused Marciano and Oosterwcyk of security fraud in 1995/1996 and money laundering between 1996 and 2004.
The indictment also alleged that some of the proceeds of the alleged security fraud were invested through Royal Bank of Canada on the Cayman Islands and between 2001 (5 years after Marciano's and Oosterwyck' presumed violation) and 2004 channelled to Crissi, Horeb and other entities affiliated with Mr. Agam. Crissi, Horeb and the other entities were administered and managed by a trust company affiliated with the Vaduz law office Marxer & Partner ("Marxer") which had sole discretion over the affairs of the entities. Due to the fact that these entities received Xybernaut proceeds Mr. Agam was also indicted, however, not for security fraud, but for money laundering only.

How did Mr. Agam react when he found out about this accusations?

Mr. Agam was not aware that the entities received proceeds from the alleged security fraud. Upon him being noticed about the indictment, Mr. Agam, in early January 2005, informed Marxer about the indictment and requested them to investigate regarding the allegations in the indictment. He also offered the US Attorney and the Liechtenstein authorities his support for the investigation. Furthermore, he initiated a thorough independent financial and legal audit regarding the entities.
After Mr. Agam informed Marxer about the indictment, Marxer, on 4 February 2005, notified the Liechtenstein authorities about the indictment. Consequently, with order dated 17 February 2005, the Liechtenstein Court of Justice froze the assets of Crissi and Horeb.

What eventually came out of those accusations?
During the investigation and upon the submission of documents relating to Mr. Agam and the Liechtenstein entities to the US authorities the US District Court for the Eastern District of New York with order dated 1 March 2006 dismissed 49 of the 64 counts in the indictment, dropping all allegations regarding Liechtenstein and leaving only allegations concerning the period from 2001-2004. With respect to the remaining allegations the US Attorney in March 2007 reached plea agreements with Oosterwyck and Marciano. As to Oosterwyck all allegations regarding money laundering were dropped. As for Marciano, the plea agreement concluded that money laundering occurred up to May 2001 in the amount of USD 1-2 mio. The allegations relating to after May 2001 (2001-2004) were dropped, thus also the allegations in the indictment concerning Mr. Agam.

Where does the case stands now?

Following the developments in the US and upon presentation of Mr. Agam's audit to the Liechtenstein authorities, the Liechtenstein Prosecutor applied to terminate the proceedings regarding Crissi and Horeb and unfreeze the assets. No wrongdoing was found. Consequently, the proceedings were terminated with the above mentioned orders of the Liechtenstein Court of Justice dated 26 June 2007 and with order of the same date the assets were unfrozen. Furthermore, the Liechtenstein authorities elected to compensate Crissi and Horeb for part of the damage inflicted on them by the proceedings.

Does Mt. Agam has any further plans regarding this incident?

Mr. Agam considers initiating proceedings against Marxer for mismanagement in connection with the involvement of the mentioned Liechtenstein entities in the proceedings in the United States and Liechtenstein.