Archive for January 16th, 2011
Elmer to give more Cayman documents to WikiLeaks
(Guardian): The offshore bank account details of 2,000 "high net worth individuals" and corporations – detailing massive potential tax evasion – will be handed over to the WikiLeaks organisation in London tomorrow (Monday 17 January) by the most important and boldest whistleblower in Swiss banking history, Rudolf Elmer, two days before he goes on trial in his native Switzerland. Elmer, who after his press conference will return to Switzerland from exile in Mauritius to face trial, is a former chief operating officer in the Cayman Islands and employee of Julius Baer bank, which accuses him of stealing the information.
The first crop of documents which Elmer leaked were scrutinised by the Guardian newspaper in 2009, which found "details of numerous trusts in which wealthy people have placed capital. This allows them lawfully to avoid paying tax on profits, because legally it belongs to the trust … The trust itself pays no tax, as a Cayman resident", although "the trustees can distribute money to the trust’s beneficiaries".
Now, Jack Blum Elmer’s lawyer says, "Elmer is being tried for violating Swiss banking secrecy law even though the data is from the Cayman Islands. This is bold extraterritorial nonsense. Swiss secrecy law should apply to Swiss banks in Switzerland, not a Swiss subsidiary in the Cayman Islands."
Cops arrest suspect robbers
(CNS): Update Sunday 8:30am — Police have now arrested two men in connection with a robbery on Saturday at a George Town money transfer store. The robbery which took place at the Reggae Money Express, in Elizabethan Square, in George Town only yards from the Police Headquarters occurred at around 6.30 in the evening. One man believed entered the premises with what was believed to be a firearm, threatened staff and made off with a sum of cash.No shots were fired no-one was injured in the incident. Later that evening, following a police operation in the George Town area involving uniform, CID and armed officers, two men (aged 19 and 21 years) were arrested on suspicion of robbery, the RCIPS said. (Photo Dennie Warren Jr)
The two men are currently in police custody while enquiries are ongoing.
The robbery came in the wake of two other robberies on Friday night in Northward and West Bay where the robbers were armed with machetes and guns respectively. In the incident in Northward at the Plum Tree convenience store a man sustained serious injuries when he was assaulted by one of the suspects.
Officers are now seeking witnesses and anyone with information on what is the fifth robbery of 2011 can call George Town CID on 949 4222 or crimestoppers on 800 8477 (TIPS)