reprinted from Houston Bizjournal
Judge orders Stanford in jail until trial
Houston Business Journal - by Greg Barr Senior Reporter
A federal judge on Tuesday revoked a prior order to release R. Allen Stanford on bail and ordered that he remain behind bars pending his trial on conspiracy and fraud charges.
U.S. District Judge David Hittner had weighed arguments presented June 29 by prosecutors, who said the beleaguered Houston financier accused of masterminding a $7 billion Ponzi scheme was a flight risk, as well as admonitions by his defense attorney countering those claims.
Taking into account the evidence against Stanford, the nature of the charges, the severity of the proposed punishment and other factors, Hittner wrote in his decision to revoke a June 25 magistrate’s decision to grant Stanford’s release on $500,000 bail that it is “sufficient to weigh in favor of detention” and that he poses a “significant risk to flee the court’s jurisdiction prior to trial.”
The judge said Stanford’s family ties to Houston are “tenuous at best and of recent vintage,” noting that it was only when it became clear that an indictment would be returned against him that he began making living arrangements in Houston, and that he was found in Virginia when the indictments were handed down.
“Moreover Stanford’s longtime residence in Antigua and his frequent travels across the globe and to multiple foreign countries belie his contention that he has strong ties to Houston,” the judge wrote.
Stanford surrendered his Antigua-Barbua passport to federal authorities on June 29, according to a court filing, but a second expired passport issued from Antigua has yet to be accounted for.
According to a Reuters report, Stanford attorney Dick DeGuerin said he would appeal the decision to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.
Stanford, 59, faces 21 counts of conspiracy, fraud, bribery and obstruction of justice and remains behind bars pending Hittner’s decision. Five other former associates face similar charges for participating in an alleged Ponzi scheme that prosecutors said involved the sale of $7 billion worth of certificates of deposit. Stanford pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Trial has been set for Aug. 25.
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