SEC probes three major U.S. oil companies

[seemslikeadream]

New York, NY, Aug. 5 (UPI) -- Questions over possible bribes paid through Riggs Bank has sparked a federal investigation into three major U.S. oil companies.


The Securities and Exchange Commission notified Marathon Oil, Amerada Hess and ChevronTexaco of the investigation, and a Washington grand jury is also looking into Riggs's handling of accounts for the dictator of Equatorial Guinea, the Washington Post reported.



The report found Riggs may have allowed Equatorial Guinea and dictator Teodoro Obiang Nguema to siphon millions of dollars in oil revenue into his personal accounts.

Regulators also said Riggs failed to report hundreds of suspicious transactions in more than 150 accounts held by officials of Saudi Arabia.
more
http://washingtontimes.com/upi-breaking/20040805-064629-9807r.htm

[cthrumatrix]

1. well if they would allow Sibel Edmonds to share what she knows

about govt. corruption this would be "second nature"

[Massacure]

2. In other news, President Bush has taken all those companies recordes

and has classified them as state secrets.

[seemslikeadream]

3. Pretty close to the truth Massacure

but they didn't have to clasify what's been destroyed!
Ah, but the documents are GONE:

Marathon Ashland building may be a loss

By TJ Aulds
Texas City Sun

Published August 04, 2004

TEXAS CITY — It took fire crews nearly 12 hours to completely knock out a blaze at the Marathon Ashland Petroleum Oil refinery. Still, one of the first symbols of Texas City’s rebirth from the 1947 disaster may not survive the flames.

The fire broke out on the second floor of the refinery’s main office building around 9:15 Monday night. While the blaze was contained to the south (or front) office building, early indications from company officials and fire investigators was that the building — built just after the 1947 disaster and opened in 1949 — will have to come down.

A connecting office building to the north was undamaged. The Marathon Ashland office building is located at the front of the refinery in the 1300 block of Loop 197 South.

The cause of the blaze is under investigation, but local fire officials quickly announced that the fire was accidental.

....
http://texascitysun.com/story.lasso?wcd=6245

"SEC probes Marathon Oil payments in Equitorial Guinea (and HQ burns down)"

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=post&forum=102&topic_id=728495&mesg_id=728495

[leesa]

4. Investigate the millions but ignore the billions in theft by oil companies

[DoYouEverWonder]

5. Riggs Bank?

Isn't one W's relatives on the Board of that bank?

[seemslikeadream]

6. That would be Uncle Jonathan Bush

WaPo: Allbritton Loses Riggs Bank (front page, day 3)
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=691609

SEC probes Marathon Oil payments in Equitorial Guinea (and HQ burns down)
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x728495

Pinochet: Murderer and Thief
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=720406

Bank Investigated for Pinochet's Fraud
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=712043

[emad]

7. Re: Rigg's consultant Bruce McColm:

From:
http://www.innercitypress.org/finwatch.html

From last week's Senate hearings: ExxonMobil, Amerada Hess and Marathon Oil contributed to a culture of corruption in Equatorial Guinea. The report cited millions of dollars of payments that the companies made to Brig. Gen. Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo and his cronies over the years to lease property and fund the education of the children of the ruling elite. Equatorial Guinea was Riggs Bank's largest client, with deposits reaching as much as $700 million, or more than 10% of the bank's assets... In the hearings, Simon P. Kareri, who managed Riggs's West African business until he was fired in January, declined to explain why he lugged a 60-pound suitcase stuffed with $3 million in plastic-wrapped cash to Riggs's Dupont Circle branch.

Riggs' "consultant" Bruce McColm said, ''Equatorial Guinea was Riggs's most lucrative account and it was a gravy train and they were going to do business there regardless.'' So when Riggs runs onto the rocks, exposed for money laundering for dictators in Chile and Equatorial Guinea among others, who's brought in to buy it? Why, another managerially-troubled bank, PNC. Which was subject to Fed no-acquisition orders throughout 2003. Seems like a bad fit...

[emad]

8. Wonder if there's any link to Manhattan DA's investigation into

BNP Paribas/disgraced UK Iraqi Nadhmi Auchi who got a 15 month suspended sentence for the bribes scam at France's ELF oil co:

Manhattan DA investigators probe London BNP Paribas bank links:


From Sunday Times 1 August 04

MI6 probes French links to Iraq scam
Robert Winnett and Mark Hollingsworth

Snip:

The role of BNP Paribas has recently come under increased scrutiny. Last week, investigators for the Manhattan district attorney were in London making inquiries. The district attorney has launched a criminal investigation into alleged “improper banking practices” at BNP Paribas over the oil-for-food accounts.

The bank was responsible for issuing “letters of credit” to guarantee payments by companies, governments and individuals trading with Iraq through the UN scheme. It also converted the money between different currencies and invested the deposits which funded the oil-for-food deals.

and


Among those to profit indirectly from the contract was Nadhmi Auchi, a British-based businessman who is 34th in The Sunday Times Rich List with a personal fortune of £898m. Auchi, who lives in a mansion in Kingston upon Thames, southwest London, owns shares in BNP Paribas through his company General Mediterranean Holdings (GMH). He was previously a significant shareholder in Paribas, had a place on a shareholder committee and was an influential figure in the merger of the two banks. Auchi, a former Iraqi oil ministry official who moved to Britain in the 1980s and has reportedly advised the prime minister on the reconstruction of Iraq, says he played no role in the BNP Paribas oil-for-food deals. His spokesman said last week: “Neither Mr Auchi nor GMH was involved directly or indirectly in the UN oil- for-food programme. He only knew about the programme from what was published in the media. “Mr Auchi has always believed that the UN oil-for-food programme could have been better thought out, organised and operated.”

Auchi, 67, moves in powerful circles and has cultivated close relationships within the Labour party. He once employed Keith Vaz, the former Europe minister, as a director of his holding company. Lord Sainsbury, the science minister, arranged for a painting to be given to him to celebrate the 20th anniversary of his firm. However, last November the businessman was fined £1.4m and received a 15-month suspended sentence in France for receiving illegal commissions from Elf, the oil firm. He has extensive hotel, banking, construction and aviation interests in the Middle East.

Another company in which he has a significant stake, Orascom, won a contract to provide a mobile phone network in Iraq after the war. But American officials now allege that the firm paid bribes of more than $10m to secure this deal.

Snip end

From:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/newspaper/0,,176-1197984,0 ...

edit:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=2145736