Stanford trial highlights

January 30:

Witness testifies about mystery investment portfolio

A jury was told Monday that Stanford International Bank (SIB) in Antigua had placed assets worth billions of dollars in a mysterious portfolio known as Tier III and controlled by Texan financier R. Allen Stanford and a few other people.

Testifying at the start of the second week of Stanford's US$7 billion fraud trial, former Stanford executive, Mark Collinsworth, said he understood that Tier III contained conservative investments such as bonds and blue chip stocks, but that he had no personal knowledge of the portfolio.

He said Tier III accounted for US$5.5 billion of the bank's investments in 2008, compared to about US$1.5 billion for the Tier I and II portfolios combined.

Tier 1 contained cash and liquid assets, he said, and Tier II contained more aggressive investments.

- CMC

January 30:

Ex-Stanford worker describes unqualified employees

A former employee testifying Monday in the fraud trial of jailed Texas financier R. Allen Stanford told jurors he worked in an office in which unqualified people, including an executive's farm hand and preacher, were hired as financial analysts and where he was asked to alter financial figures.

Mark Collinsworth was called as a prosecution witness, but his testimony seemed to benefit Stanford's defence as he told jurors under questioning by the financier's attorneys that Stanford was unaware of the hiring problems.

Collinsworth instead said the person responsible for the troubled working environment was Stanford's right-hand man, James Davis, and another company official, Laura Holt.

However, a financial regulator who dealt with Stanford described him to jurors as "hands on" when it came to running his various businesses, and she alleged he controlled how his Caribbean bank - at the centre of fraud allegations against him - was regulated.

- AP

January 25:

Ex-Stanford employee tells jurors he saw problems

A former employee of Texas financier R. Allen Stanford told jurors at Stanford's fraud trial Wednesday that he believes he saw the former billionaire making up accounting figures used in an annual report to woo investors.

Leo Mejia, who worked for an advertising company created by Stanford to promote his various businesses, testified that he became uneasy working for the financier because he lost confidence in the accuracy of financial information he was given to include in advertising materials.

- AP

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