SDNY COURTHOUSE, Dec 20 – As Inner City Press covered the OneCoin trial last month, a number of names of indicted co-conspirators emerged on which we continue to follow up.
One of them was Amer Abdulaziz Salman. As Inner City Press exclusively reported on November 6, surprise cooperating witness Konstantin Ignatov brought up Amer Abdulaziz during his testimony, live-tweeted @InnerCityPress, and see here.
Another was David Pike, fellow money launderer, whose quiet release on restrictions Inner City Press unearthed and reported. Now the US Attorney's Office through Nicholas Folly has quietly tried to kick the can down the road again with Pike, and just as the Office has refused to provide any of the exhibits it used, even in response to Inner City Press' FOIA request, it has tried to hide this Pike request.
AUSA Folly made the request on December 13 - but his affidavit was turned in in paper form, not electronically. Only a week later on December 20 did it go into the docket, triggering this belated notice: "AFFIRMATION of AUSA Nicholas Folly in Support by USA as to David R. Pike. Government is requesting a 30-day continuance until January 12, 2020. (sao) ... transaction was entered on 12/20/2019 at 3:59 PM EST and filed on 12/13/2019."
It's one thing for the government to choose to coddle some money launderers and not others. But to try to hide it in this way? While withholding exhibits the absence of which allows fraudsters to continue to defend and promote the scheme? What is going on there? Inner City Press will continue on this. More on Patreon here. Watch these sites.
Inner City Press' follow-up on the trial is being hindered by the US Attorney's Office inexplicably withholding even the exhibits it showed the jurors - from whom Inner City Press has unilaterally received contact expressing outrage at where things stand. Here is another example: the US Attorney's Office is not opposing giving Mark Scott, living the high live in Florida including being spotted out to dinner with body guards, yet more time to prepare motions to try to avoid ever going to jail. By consenting, the US Attorney's Office may be setting up a situation where Mark Scott's sentencing gets pushed back and he remains free. Meaning Gilbert Armenta, fellow money launderer, is out and registering even more companies, the same as he did for his OneCoin money laundering bank in Georgia. We'll have more on this.
Here's the letter from Scott's lawyer, who previously worked in the US Attorney for the SDNY's office: "Dear Judge Ramos: We write on behalf of our client, Mark Scott, who was convicted on November 21, 2019 in the above-referenced matter on two counts, conspiracy to commit money laundering and conspiracy to commit bank fraud. Following the verdict, the Court set a deadline of December 20, 2019 for Mr. Scott to file Rule 29 and Rule 33 motions. We respectfully request that the Court extend this deadline by one month, to January 20, 2020. This will allow Mr. Scott and counsel sufficient time to review the factual and legal issues that may be relevant to such motions.
The Government has no objection to this request and proposes to submit any opposition by February 10, 2020 or make a subsequent application for an extension. Respectfully Submitted, /s Arlo Devlin-Brown."
More delay?
On November 24 Inner City Press' exclusive live-tweets were used without any credit in a derivative article by the Racing Post's Peter Scargill - apparently dodginess pervades this part of the industry.
Inner City Press has been contacted from Dubai of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum, from Amer Abdulaziz's native Bahrain and elsewhere by whistleblowers in the horse racing industry, with extensive information about Amer Abdulaziz's previous schemes and sudden windfall with OneCoin money. Inner City Press received another contact from OneCoin victims in Dubai on December 6. It will not rest - including on getting the exhibits released. It has submitted a FOIA request, acknowledged by DOJ in Washington. And still, nothing.
While some say he is going into hiding, it would seem that the US FBI or its overseas partners could easily bring him in. So why haven't they? This is an Inner City Press series. More on Patreon here.
