By Matthew Russell Lee Patreon Periscope Song
BBC - Decrypt - LightRead - Honduras - Thread
SDNY Courthouse, Oct 27 – UN former staff member Karim Elkorany was arrested then freed on $500,000 bond on September 2, 2020 in connection with drugging and raping women in Iraq while working for the UN in 2016, then allegedly lying to the FBI about it in 2017.
On October 27, 2022, after the testimony of victims including about how Elkorany while a UN "Communications Specialist" drugged and raped them, including in the US, Elkorany was sentenced to 15 years in prison.
Inner City Press live tweeted it, here
OK - UN rapist Karim Elkorany is up for sentencing.
In the run up to the sentencing (already 20 minutes late in starting), I rode the elevator up to the 21st floor with three of Elkorany's family members (& supporters).
They were dismissive of the UN connection and wouldn't answer when asked about the victims In the courtroom, there are many victims. First Dawn Cardi his lawyer came out of the holding cell, then Elkorany himself, in prison beige, hands behind his back. Cardi came to speak with the family members (who'd forgotten to bring COVID masks)
Judge Buchwald enters. At the prosecution table, two FBI agents. Defense: Dawn Cardi, 99 Madison Ave NY NY. She says, "His family is in the back." Yeah - the trio rude and dismissive on the elevator. Nice family... not.
Judge Buchwald: We have 9 written statements from individuals described as Victims... I realize Victim 20 is not in the plea agreement. There is a letter of support [In the docket, Nur Elkorany, rude on elevator, wrote of Karim Elkoran's "previous work abroad"
Judge Buchwald: This proceeding is unusual, I've never had this many victims. They will speak 1st. Asst US Attorney Lara Pomerantz: We'll follow the order of the numbers in the Pre Sentencing Report Victim 1: Who do I describe the impact of this crime on my life?
Victim 1: There is no part of me that has gone untouched. On Nov 9, 2016, I was 31 and married. I traveled to Kurdistan. Karim Elkorany was there as a Communications Specialist with the United Nations [whose @UN_Spokesperson has refused all comment]
Victim 1: We went to a restaurant. I was drugged - then I'm in Elkorany's UN marked vehicle. He drives me to his apartment & apes me. I feel pain. I can't speak. I can't move. When I woke up next afternoon, I was disoriented. My body was in pain, a fingernail off
Victim 1: I wonder, Did he take pictures of me? By drugging me, only he has knowledge of the depth of his depravity. I have an emptiness my mind fills with shame. I apologized to my editor. I couldn't walk.
Victim 1: Elkorany sent me a message. I told MSF, they falsely told me it was too late for a drug test. I returned home. I told my husband and (pause) I felt the deepest pain I have ever experienced. It would devastate not only me but also those who loved me.
Victim 1: I was terrified of my husband, until last year, five years after being raped. I had memory loss, of people I knew. I gained weight. I'm a freelance journalist. The trauma killed my focus. My output dropped, I lost my income. My career has never recovered
Victim 1: Reading about sexual abuse trial causes me trauma: Harvey Weinstein... Bill Cosby... Ghislaine Maxwell. I imagined this case going to trial and what the defense would say about me. [Note - this rapist was a United Nations Communications Specialist. @UN_Spokesperson has refused all questions on what SG @AntonioGuterres knew and when, even as Inner City Press asked & wrote 21 stories. 1st:
Victim 1: When I found out he had raped others, I had to do something. He was drugging and raping protected by his United Nations authority. The delay of three and a half years had a devastating consequence on my life.
Victim 1: By 2019 I was making progress [& Elkorany was raping again, in the US, still employed by the UN: documentcloud.org UN Victim Statement: UN Staffer Sexually Abused 13+ in Iraq & US but Guterres Kept Paying Him while...
Victim 1: I had a question: Why did it take so long? When the US Attorney's Office brought charges in 2020 it involved only the crime against me. [Note: Elkorany drugged at least 19 women, and raped at least 13]
Victim 1: This system is harmful to victims. Reading the sentencing submissions devastated me again. He victimized 19 other women. He perfected a method [while working for the UN from 2012 through 2019, when he raped a woman in the USA
Victim 1: Some of my own colleagues texted with Elkorany about these abuses - well known journalists, accessories to his crimes. They have escaped accountability. I am not requesting a specific sentence, only to stop Karim Elkorany. He should pay Inner City Press @innercitypress · 2h Victim 1: I want to speak to the defendant. Karim, I want you to look at me, one of the countless lives you damaged. Your family members have no opinion on your guilt [That's what the told Inner City Press in the elevator up, too - what a family]
Victim 1: You told everyone I was lying. For six years I've gone through hell because of what you did to me. Now it is your turn to shoulder the responsibility for your actions. [Elkorany asks for light jail sentence because of threats he says he'll face]
Judge Buchwald: The government made it clear to me that the adjournment was needed for you to be here. Ms. Pomerantz? AUSA: Next up is Victim 2. Victim 2 removes mask, says: For so long I've remained unable to comprehend the pain Karim caused me.
Victim 2: I have worried that I look like a fool for what Karim did to me. The only people served by my silence are Karim and people like him [Many in the United Nations system, who did nothing, and worse]
Victim 2: They knew Karim was a predator. But they said I was making my own choice. He used his position [with the UN]. I am sorry (sobs) I did not stop Karim. I feel empathy for those who came before me. I feel guilty about those who followed
Victim 2: I thought I was the only one. I own gratitude to Victim 1 in particular. Karim's abuse of power is not deserving of any meaningful leniency. All his talk about caring for others was worse than a sham.
Victim 2: What were the drugs? Who else knew? He still won't say. "Nothing works the way it is supposed to. Not the UN." Inner City Press @innercitypress · 2h Victim: I'd like to address the defendant directly. It took me a while to piece everything together. Your gaslighting meant I didn't suspect you of being a predator like some many other colleagues
Victim: My self-proclaimed feminist friend Karim drugged and sexually assaulted me and countless others. My body shook. The body keeps the score. Did you intend to rape me each time you invited me over?
Victim, to UN rapist Karim Elkorany: You wrote in 2010, "Silence means yes."
Victim: We will go on and begin again. Karim, your story ends today. AUSA: Victim 14. Victim 14: Karim invited me to his apartment. The rest is a blank. I bought into the carefully constructed facade of a predatorVictim 14: He told me he would roofie a high school girl and rape her. He probably did. He sent me an update from the UN in Baghdad, saying It's just like college here, except all aid workers.
Victim 14: My best friend lived with Karim for a year. But he'll never admit to anything that cannot be proven. I was supposed to graduate with a PhD, but I had to delay due to stress and trauma. I urge you to impose the maximum sentence [Only 15 years]
AUSA: Victim 9? Victim 9: (Speaking over the phone) I was unable to do a written statement. I have flashback-- [Then a male voice cuts in, oblivious. Some wonder: @AntonioGuterres ? There's been no answer
Victim 9: He should get the maximum sentence. AUSA: Next is Victim 10, also by phone. Victim 10: I was trying to find my footing in the humanitarian sphere and Karim Elkorany pretended to be my friend. Then he drugged and raped me.
Victim 10: I struggled for months to find a new job after I "abandoned my post." She reads from statement: "You used your position in a powerful agency, in a lawless country, to prey on humanitarian aid workers. There is a special place in hell for you." #UN
AUSA: Victim 20. Victim 20: [her statement says Karim Elkorany "pretended to show compassion toward vulnerable Iraqis when he started working for the UN." NOTE: Not a single UN Correspondent has come to cover this UN rape trial, or answer Victim 20: Karim Elkorany is a serial rapist, and no one else should have to suffer because of him. He's a predator. He is a threat to public safety. #UN
AUSA: Any more victims? Victim 7: I hadn't planned to speak. But Karim Elkorany reconnected with my in Dupont Circle. In his apartment in Kalorama, he raped me. After talking about Ambassador Stephens, killed in Benghazi.
Victim 7: After I was raped by Karim Alkorany [UN "Communications Specialist"], I went for the State Department to Jamaica and elsewhere. I drank your drink so I felt it must have been my fault. But now I've heard from others, I can speak.
Victim 7: I haven't told anyone in my family. No one knows I'm here today. It's shocking what you did to me. I'm moving on with my life. Victim 13 (over the phone) - I am choosing to speak. I met Karim in Baghdad with the UN
Judge Buchwald: We'll hear from Ms [Dawn] Cardi, Karim Elkorany's laywer. Cardi: This is a most difficult day. There is nothing he can say. He'd beginning the journey of receiving treatment for mental health and substance abuse problems. [He worked for UN 2012-19
Cardi: Karim knows he may never be forgiven. But do we lock him up and throw away the key so to speak with a 15 year sentence-- Press Q: How is that the maximum? Be aware: the guidelines agreed to in the plea agreement are even lower
Cardi: Believe Dr Krueger, about "pre-arousal patterns," this "coercive arousal pattern," his diagnosis. [He's "Clinical Professor of Psychiatry, Columbia U" and said the 2019 rape was only after an FBI interview, not an arrest - UNreal
Cardi: Supervised release will be the proving ground. We have no idea, the government cannot predict. An MCC guard who raped got much less [Inner City Press covered that case, here
Cardi: We are asking this court to allow him to continue his journey. [Note: Krueger wrote "Empathy for the pedophile.]
Assistant US Attorney: Karim Elkorany drugged his victims before raping them. The pain is carried by his victims, in the US and abroad. We ask for 15 years. He did not use condoms. He did not care about their health or wellbeing. He harvested their emails AUSA: Dr. Krueger's recommendation is abstinence, for a person he says gets sexual arousal from incapacitation. This is not a solution. It does not make sense.
AUSA Pomerantz: The defendant imposed a life sentence on his victims. Your Honor should impose 15 years. Justice demands the maximum. Judge Buchwald: Mr. Elkorany? Karim Elkorany: I realize that words of apology will only ring hollow here today.
Elkorany: I am deeply, deeply sorry for the pain I've cause, the trail of relationships, the violations of trust... I accept treatment, readily. I have shamed my family. [They sure didn't act shamed in the elevator with the Press on the way up to the courtroom]
Elkorany: I want to take care of my parents in their declining years. Judge Buchwald: I reject the objection to 23; as to 59, a victim believed she received an STD from Elkorany, chlamydia. He denied it, but it's asymptomatic. I reject the objection.
Judge Buchwald: It's true Mr. Elkorany only pled to 19 instances, not 20... I reject the objection to 114.
Judge Buchwald: The Probation Dep't believes the guideline is higher than the US Attorney's Office agreed to. [Apparently 33 to 41 months ?!?
Judge Buchwald: He admits to Count 1, false statements to the FBI. Count 3 charges an assault of an internationally protected person, Victim 2. The plea agreement continues other admissions: drugged and sexually assaulted 13 women, & 6 others.
Judge Buchwald: The maximum sentence for that he pled to is 15 years. Defense wants the stipulated [agreed] guidelines, 33 to 41 months. But he assaulted Victim 3 in NJ and DC. What would be the punishment? in NJ, it's up to 20 years. In DC, it's any term or life
Some might say, if 33 to 41 months were going to be agreed to, along with a 15 year max, maybe it should have been prosecuted in state court in NJ or DC. Judge Buchwald: This shows 15 years is not excessive.
Judge Buchwald reads from a Victim Statement; "You befriended me at the UN in Iraq - then you drugged and raped me."
Judge Buchwald: We did not hear any apology. He says he lost his moral compass. But he didn't find it for 17 years. His explanations are lame & offensive. I left something upstairs but I'll do it from memory: he blamed his parents because he were working too hard
Judge Buchwald: While out on bail, Mr. Elkorany made no effort to get any kind of therapy. The sentence is reflect the seriousness of the offense... I sentence Karim Elkorany to 60 months on count 1, 120 on count 2, consecutive - 15 years.
Judge Buchwald: I want to commend the women who spoke up and participated. You are so brave and articulate.
A superseding indictment belatedly unsealed on October 29, 2020 said Elkorany raped a UN contractor, in the US and Dohuk, Iraq. And still the UN did nothing.
On May 24, 2022 Elkorany pleaded guilty: "KARIM ELKORANY, a former communications specialist with the United Nations (“UN”) in Iraq, pled guilty before United States District Judge Naomi Reice Buchwald to sexually assaulting an internationally protected person and making false statements to cover up another sexual assault. In connection with the plea, ELKORANY also admitted that he drugged and/or sexually assaulted seventeen additional victims. U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “Karim Elkorany admitted today to drugging at least 19 victims, and sexually assaulting at least 13 of them while they were unconscious after he drugged them. He committed many of his heinous crimes while employed by the United Nations." He raped while employed by the UN - AND THE UN DID NOTHING. In fact, the UN helped him flee and do it again.
Victims have put in letters for sentencing and Inner City Press, banned from entering the UN due to its accountability coverage, has emailed UN Spokesman Stephane Dujarric, Melissa Fleming, Antonio Guterres and others each day, on each letter, for comment and what the UN ever did. Nothing. Here is Victim 2: "My name is . I worked in the humanitarian aid and development sector in and before accepting a job with in Iraq. When I came to Iraq, I was in love and that relationship changed what I envisioned for my life. I was happy. Although far from home, I had a lifeline to supportive loved ones and was able to pursue my career in good health. I would lose all these things after meeting Karim. In 2014, I met Karim in Erbil. He said the Iraq office was hiring, and they offered me a consultancy. Gregarious and charismatic, Karim waxed lyrical about the privilege and prestige of working for the UN over dinner, or drinks, or cups of tea. I felt proud to work for the U.N. It was there that Karim began to drug and assault me. This would often happen over an evening cup of Chamomile tea. Because I was drugged, I couldn’t hold the memory in my head long enough to process it, let alone talk about it. I was confused and ashamed. Soon, I would find myself utterly isolated due to what I now recognize as a systematic effort to cut me off from my entire support network. My immediate supervisor was a man named Jeffrey Bates, but he was rarely in the office. His absence left Karim unsupervised, unaccountable, and in charge of section. His position offered him an enormous amount of influence and numerous opportunities to supervise me directly and, as a result, chances to sexually assault me. Normal requests quickly became an exercise in control, authority, and humiliation. “You can’t make that call home, I’m calling a meeting.” “I need to know where you are at all times, it’s a security issue.” “You can’t leave this room until I say you’re done with work.” Other UN staff knew about Karim. Before I ever set foot in Iraq, someone warned me to watch out for him. The first day that I arrived on the UN Compound, someone approached me and said: “The moment I saw you, I knew who hired you.” Full 9 page letter on Inner City Press' DocumentCloud here
On September 3, Elkorany sought a long delay in sentencing - the day after another UN-linked fraudster, Cary Yan, has his indictment unsealed. See a pattern here? Elkorany's letter: "Our firm represents defendant Karim Elkorany in the above-captioned action. We write to request an adjournment of Mr. Elkorany’s sentencing, which is currently scheduled for September 29, 2022."
On September 6 in a partially redacted letter the US opposed, quoting Victim-2 that she mentally prepares for all court dates in this case and is hopeful that the sentencing will give her some relief." To seal / redact about Victim-1, the prosecutors cite US v. Amodeo on "venerable common law exception to the presumption of access to judicial documents."
On September 8, Elkorany's lawyer reiterated the request to delay sentencing - and included in the letter the the Probation Department in its pre-sentencing report is recommending a sentence of 15 years.
On October 17, the US Attorney's Office formally asked for 15 years, and listed 20 victims. Meanwhile, Elkorany is sealing portions of his sentencing memo. Watch this site.
Credulous UN insider media reported, "the woman Elkorany assaulted in 2016 informed the UN at the time, and the organization investigated his conduct. When the UN concluded its own investigation, it referred the case to US authorities, Stéphane Dujarric, the UN spokesperson, said. The FBI began its probe in 2017 and Elkorany resigned from the UN in 2018."
So even by this apologist account in Bluewashing media giving the UN a Pass, the UN kept paying him after it knew he raped. And never answered the detailed questions of Inner City Press which Guterres banned. The UN is totally corrupt, and USUN in now complicit. We'll have more on this.
On November 9, 2020 another brief status conference in the case, which Inner City Press live tweeted, below.
On August 17, 2021, Elkorany's motions to try to suppress evidence against him, gathered with search warrants, were denied, order on Inner City Press' DocumentCloud here.
On January 28, 2022 the US Attorney's Office asked for yet more delay in the UN rape case, to February 28. But it did say "if the parties are unable to reach agreement on a pretrial disposition within that time, the Government expect to ask the Court to set a trial date, citing 18 USC 3771(a)(7) for the proposition that victims have the right to proceeding free from unreasonable delay. Yeah.
On February 28, 2022, the US wrote in again, saying a trial date should be set - but not too soon; one or both defense counsel are unavailable June 9-10, June 14, July 23-August 6 and October 7-21. Oh.
On April 19, yet another conference in the UN rapist case. This time the US Attorney's Office said it is trying to settle the case - with the victims knowledge? - and asked for a date of May 4. That way, they said, if a plea is not reached the case can be reassigned to the trial judge and a request put in by the May 15 deadline to request a large courtroom for a trial. Or if the deadline is missed, more delay. Inner City Press asked, in April: what about the victims? Why is the UN and its rapists treated with such kids-gloves?
On May 4, the US Attorney's Office wrote in to cancel the day's proceeding, saying " The Government has not to date extended a formal plea offer to the defendant and intends to consult with the victims in this case before extending such an offer. Nevertheless, the parties believe that it is likely that a pretrial disposition will be agreed upon in the next two weeks and therefore respectfully request that the Court set a date for a change of plea hearing on May 20, 2022 at a time convenient for the Court. The Government respectfully requests that the change of plea hearing be held in-person. The Government understands the defendant may seek to request to have the hearing via video conference." Photo here. Watch this site.
From November 9, 2020: AUSA Richenthal says the US is reviewing more electronic devices.
Elkorany's lawyer Dawn Cardi asks for 90 more days' delay, since some of the discovery is marked "Restricted."
Judge Buchwald: In the times of COVID, to maintain social distance between lawyer and defendant, 90 days is not unreasonable. We are heading into the end of the year period, very different this year. I ask you to make sure that the 90 days is all the time needed
And so February 9 at 10:30 am was arrived at. And Inner City Press again covered it, here and below (Podcast here)
Now on May 17, Elkorany's lawyers say they "have provided to the government defense counsel's pretrial motions... we intend to confer with the government about its view as to how to proceed in terms of filing and/or redacting and/or seeking the Court's permission to file under seal certain documents." Secrets about UN rapes - but this is a public process, despite the UN's routine cover ups.
And delays: on July 23, a request was made to exclude time under the Speedy Trial Act, which is not only for defendants but also the public, from July 30 to October 28. Where is this case going? More immunity and cover up?
From February 9: Elkorany's lawyer wants to delay 90 days.
The Assistant US Attorney says given the victims in this case they want to move faster.
Elkorany's lawyer says she has some state trials so she need more time.
Now AUSA says 30 days to respond to defense's motions. That would be June 10. And see here.
Inner City Press, which has asked the UN in writing for comment, will continue to cover it.
The US Attorney for the Southern District of New York stated that Elkorany, "a former communications specialist with the United Nations in Iraq, was charged in an Indictment in Manhattan federal court with two counts of making false statements to special agents of the FBI in an effort to conceal his drugging and sexual assault of multiple women while he worked for the UN...In or around December 2016, Victim-1 reported the sexual assault to the UN. The UN initiated an investigation, through which ELKORANY was notified of the substance of Victim-1’s allegations against him."
The UN claims it has a zero tolerance and blacklisting policy for sexual abuse, but despite a victim complaining to the UN in this case, on Wednesday Elkorany was leaving freely in New Jersey when he was arrested.
The superseding indict which was intially wrongly kept under seal says Elkorany raped Victim-2, a UN contractor, in Dohuk, Iraq and in the US. So the UN's inaction contributed to the rape of a UN contractor - and still NOTHING from the UN of Antonio Guterres. We'll have more on this.
On September 16 the US Attorney's Office, already under fire for withholding information, filed a Protective Order to withhold from the Press and public information about this UN official's "names and/or other identifying information or photographs of individuals alleged to have been sexually assaulted and/or drugged by the defendant or with whom the defendant had a romantic or physical relationship; (b) non-public nude, semi-nude, or sexualized photographs," if it has been " provided to the Government by the United Nations." So the UN has been producing pornography, and is not itself indicted, only this Elkorany? We'll have more on this.
On September 2 after 6 pm, as exclusively reported by Inner City Press which has been banned from the UN for its questions, was released on a bond to be signed by his father and brother, but allowed to leave home to work from 8 am to 6 pm.
There was another proceeding on September 10, before District Judge Naomi Reice Bulkwald. Inner City Press live tweeted it, here:
Elkorany's lawyer has not responded to the US Attorney's proposed protective order. Note: little in this case should be withheld or sealed - it is about spending public's money for a UN staffer to drug and rape women in Iraq, then have the UN cover it up.
AUSA Pomerantz: There are cell phone and laptops that the FBI is in the process of extracting. [What will they show about the UN of @AntonioGuterres ? ]
Since the cell phones and devices are being extracted to produce discovery, next date is November 9, 11:45 am. Inner City Press will continue to cover this case and the UN.
Then in the docket, this: "Pretrial Conference as to Karim Elkorany held on 9/10/2020. Initial conference as to Karim Elkorany held by telephone on 9/10/2020. Lara Pomerantz, Amanda Houle and Daniel Richenthal for the government; Dawn Cardi for the defendant; Defendant Karim Elkorany; court reporter present. Conference scheduled for November 9, 2020 at 11:45a.m. Speedy trial time excluded until November 9, 2020."
Inner City Press also covered the September 2, 6:20 pm presentment of Elkorany, here:
Elkorany is represented by Dawn Cardi of Cardi & Edgar LLP of 99 Madison Avenue.
Judge Cott: I take it you are retained, Ms. Cardi?
Cardi: I am.
Judge Cott: Mr Elkorany, if you are a citizen of another country you may have a right to consular notification.
Cardi: He pleads not guilty.
Judge Cott: First, confirm you are waiving a public reading.
Cardi: Correct.
AUSA Houle: "The parties have a proposed bail package. A $500,000 personal recognizance bond co-signed by his father Awny ELkorany and brother Nor Elkorany. Surrender of all passports by five pm tomorrow. Home detention at parents' home.
AUSA Houle: He can leave 8 am to 6 pm for work.
AUSA Houle: Refrain from any contact with victims. Drug testing and treatment as directed by Pre Trial Services. Release today provided he is fitted for GPS which we understand Pre Trial is prepared to do.
AUSA Houle: Dan Richenthal has confirmed they can do it. Richenthal: Officer Trale (sp) told me it would be possible to 5 pm. So I'm not positive.
Judge Cott: What do you want to do? Cardi: I am proposing he return home and return tomorrow morning.
Cardi: The suretors probably can't sign today either.
Judge Cott: When was he arrested?
AUSA Houle: 6 am this morning.
Cardi: My client does not have his phone and no money to get back to New Jersey. Can someone lend him the money?
Judge Cott: I cannot deal with minutia like this right now.
Elkorany was listed as a UN "Communications Specialist" -- Fleming's forte -- on press releases about Toyota, here. He was interviewed on UN Radio, here. But of course, UN Spokesperson Staphane Dujarric claims he knows nothing about it and that Guterres has a "principled position."
Inner City Press is asking the UN, On UN staffer Karim Elkorany, indicted in SDNY for lying to FBI about drugging and raping women while working for UN in Iraq, immediately state what the outcome of the victim complaining to the UN was - and why Elkorany was back at liberty in New Jersey.
This is specifically asked in the context of this statement: "UNDP participates in a joint project with other UN agencies to maintain a system-wide database called "Clear Check" to ensure that former personnel involved in substantiated cases of sexual harassment, exploitation and abuse with one entity in the UN system cannot be employed by another entity." So what did the UN actually do, other than transport a rapist from New Jersey to Iraq then bringing him home to live free?
The case is US v. Elkorany, 20-cr-437 (Buchwald). Watch this site.
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