Trial date set for Stanford

R. Allen Stanford, the Texas-born financier, who is accused of using his Antigua-based Stanford International Bank Limited to run a multibillion-dollar Ponzi scheme, will go on trial from September 12, according to court documents released in Houston.

Stanford, who had his knighthood revoked by the Antigua and Barbuda government following his arrest last year, is accused of running a US$7-billion fraud scheme, US prosecutors said.

Stanford, 60, has pleaded not guilty to more than a dozen counts of fraud, money laundering and obstruction. He faces up to life in prison if convicted.

Stanford filed a US$7.2-billion countersuit in February against federal agents alleging violations of his civil rights and illegal prosecution.

Prosecutors said that Stanford, who has been in jail since his arrest more than two years ago, used proceeds in part to fund other ventures and a lavish lifestyle.

In January, US District Judge David Hittner ruled Stanford incompetent to stand trial.

Stanford has been treated at a hospital in the Butner Federal Correctional Complex in North Carolina to treat an addiction to an anti-anxiety medication he developed while in jail.

Judge Hittner has scheduled jury selection for September 12.

- CMC