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| Israel, Samuel 6-9-2008 MA | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Jun 13 2008, 10:49 AM (129 Views) | |
| burnsjl2003 | Jun 13 2008, 10:49 AM Post #1 |
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Search broadens for missing ex-hedge fund manager Wed Jun 11, 2008 12:01pm EDT By Svea Herbst-Bayliss BOSTON (Reuters) - The manhunt for a hedge fund manager who skipped his prison date and may have killed himself dragged into a third day on Wednesday as police look for a body and other agents search for a rich man who may be on the run. Police thought Samuel Israel III, who was scheduled to begin serving a 20-year prison term for fraud on June 9, may have plunged to his death after finding his abandoned car on the Bear Mountain Bridge in New York. The words "suicide is painless" were written on it. The phrase was the title of the theme song from the television show "M*A*S*H." But with no body found, other government agencies quickly jumped on the case and are now broadening their search for the man who engineered the $1.8 trillion hedge fund industry's most brazen and long-running fraud. Israel, 48, and his partners pocketed millions as investors in his Bayou Group hedge fund lost more than $400 million over eight years, court papers show. "We haven't found him yet," Tim Miller, an investigator with the New York State Police said on Wednesday, explaining that the FBI and U.S. Marshals Service are looking for a person while police are looking for a body. The bridge where Israel's car was found crosses one of the deepest parts of the Hudson River and police said it could take a few days for a body to surface and wash ashore. But in nearly 30 years of keeping records, police have found the bodies of all but one jumper fairly quickly, Miller said. SUSPICIONS MOUNTED Suspicions that Israel may have staged his death mounted because there were no witnesses, and video cameras along the bridge's spans showed the car traveling on the bridge but were not clear on what happened next. "The tapes were inconclusive," Miller said after reviewing them. The FBI now has the tapes. Several investors who were duped by Israel's inflated resume and promises of strong returns at a time wealthy people and pension funds were putting billions into hedge funds also wondered whether Israel might be staging yet another scam. "Until they've got a body, I'm not going to believe it," said Charles Gradante, principal of the Hennessee Group, which recommended Israel's Bayou Group to his own clients. He remembers Israel, the son of a prominent New Orleans family who boasted about decades of experience at some of the world's best hedge funds, as someone who told "boldfaced" lies and likely had plenty of money stashed abroad. Israel, who once hinted at suicide in a letter to the judge sentencing him, pleaded in April with U.S. District Judge Colleen McMahon for a lighter prison term because he suffered debilitating back pain and was addicted to pain killers. McMahon was not moved and sentenced Israel to 20 years but let him stay free on bail from April to June so that the federal prison system would be able to prepare to take care of his needs. Israel was scheduled to serve his time at Federal Medical Center Devens, located 40 miles outside of Boston, which houses offenders who need long-term medical or mental health care. If Israel is on the run it would not be the first time for a hedge fund manager to have escaped. Kirk Wright, who recently hanged himself in his jail cell after having been convicted of cheating professional football players, was missing for months. Also Michael Berger, another hedge fund manager who lost millions, was arrested last year in Europe after having evaded authorities for years. http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN1144247720080611 (Additional reporting by Martha Graybow in New York; Editing by Brian Moss) |
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| burnsjl2003 | Jun 13 2008, 10:50 AM Post #2 |
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Authorities: Samuel Israel faked deathThursday, June 12, 2008 | 10:33 PMStory Media Top Stories Eyewitness NewsWHITE PLAINS, N.Y. - -- Federal Marshals and New York State Police investigators appear certain that disgraced hedge fund manager Sam Israel III faked a suicide plunge earlier this week and is now on the run after failing to report to federal prison to begin a 20-year sentence on Monday, official sources say. Based on new information, it appears Israel "definitely did not jump and is definitely on the run," one well-placed source said. According to sources, U.S. Marshals and State Police investigators were questioning an individual whose car was recorded by surveillance video at the Bear Mountain bridge where Israel abandoned his GM Envoy. On the hood of his car, written in dust was the message "Suicide is Painless," the theme of the movie and TV series M.A.S.H. However Israel was not seen jumping, and no body has been found. Israel had pleaded guilty to defrauding his hedge fund investors of $400 million in a Ponzi-like scheme, where he used new money to create the appearance of profits for earlier investors. Despite his plea, his cooperation with authorities and requests for leniency by his attorneys, a federal judge slapped Israel with a stiff sentence and stung him with harsh words. "You were, in every meaning of the sense, a career criminal," U.S. District Judge Colleen McMahon said. "You ruined lives. Financial fraud, white-collar crimes are every bit as heinous as every other type of crime and they will be punished severely." Lawyers for Israel had sought leniency, noting he's had numerous back operations and is addicted to painkillers. The judge had no compassion in her voice when she said, "He suffered from these ailments while he did the crime. He can deal with them while he does the time." http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/story?section=...ocal&id=6202114 |
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| burnsjl2003 | Jun 13 2008, 10:50 AM Post #3 |
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http://porchlightinternationalformissinguid.com/ |
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| burnsjl2003 | Jun 19 2008, 10:11 PM Post #4 |
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NY fund swindler's girlfriend accused in escape By JIM FITZGERALD (Associated Press Writer) From Associated Press June 19, 2008 8:22 PM EDT WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. - The girlfriend of a missing hedge fund swindler was arrested Thursday and charged with helping him elude his sentence on the day he was supposed to begin serving 20 years in prison. Debra Ryan, of Armonk, was charged with aiding and abetting the escape of Samuel Israel III. Federal agents said Thursday that Israel took off in a white recreational vehicle carrying a motor scooter and his belongings. Officials said he might be at RV parks, campgrounds or highway rest areas, possibly using the names Sam Ryan or David S. Clapp. On Thursday, Ryan acknowledged that she helped Israel attach a motor scooter to the back of an RV and pack the vehicle with his belongings, according to the complaint. She told authorities that on the day Israel was to surrender, she drove her car and he drove the RV to a rest area about 55 miles north of New York City. Israel parked the RV there, and the two drove back to their home, the complaint says, quoting Ryan. The complaint had no other information about what happened later that day. Israel, 48, was supposed to turn himself in to prison officials June 9 but never showed up. Authorities say he abandoned his sport utility vehicle on a Hudson River bridge, with the ominous words "Suicide is Painless" etched in dust on the hood to make it appear he had jumped and then disappeared. No body was found beneath the 150-foot-high bridge, and authorities said they believed the scene was yet another of Israel's scams. Ryan appeared before a judge in federal court in White Plains for arraignment Thursday. She was released on the condition that she post $75,000 bond by Monday. Her attorney, Paul Davison, did not enter a plea. Ryan, who could face as many as 10 years in prison if convicted, refused to comment as she left the courthouse. Davison also refused to comment. Israel turned fugitive after pleading guilty to bilking hundreds of millions of dollars from investors in his Bayou Group hedge funds. Ryan originally told police that Israel left their Armonk house June 9 to drive to prison. It was unclear whether she asked what he planned to do with his vehicle once he got to a penitentiary in Massachusetts for inmates with special health needs. http://enews.earthlink.net/article/nat?gui...0619-2016104903 |
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| wv171 | Jun 20 2008, 10:19 AM Post #5 |
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Agents search for NY swindler who faked suicide By JIM FITZGERALD Associated Press Writer Craig Ruttle, File In this April 14, 2008 file photo, Bayou Group hedge-fund founder Samuel Israel III, right, arrives at the U.S Courthouse in New York. A car found abandoned Monday June 9, 2008 on the Bear Mountain Bridge, about 40 miles north of New York City, with the phrase "Suicide is Painless" written into the dust on its surface, is registered to Israel who was supposed to report to federal prison. As of Thursday, June 19, 10 days later, he was still on the lam. U.S. marshals, FBI agents and police nationwide were on the lookout for Israel, along with border agents around the world. WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. - If Samuel Israel III had reported to prison like he was supposed to, he would probably be washing dishes, mopping floors or serving meals to fellow inmates today. And he might be getting up at 4:30 a.m. to do it. It wasn't a life to look forward to for a man who became fabulously rich - wealthy enough to rent a house from Donald Trump at $32,000 a month - as he swindled hedge-fund investors out of hundreds of millions. Israel, 48, told a judge that the idea of spending 20 years in prison was so distasteful he had considered suicide. But he eventually decided: "I have to take responsibility for my actions no matter what the consequences." That sentiment didn't last long. Within two months, federal investigators said, Israel settled on life as a fugitive. On the day he was to surrender, authorities said, he abandoned his SUV on a bridge in the New York City suburbs, etched "Suicide is Painless" in the dust on the hood to make it seem he had jumped, and skedaddled. On Thursday, 10 days later, agents got their first big break when Debra Ryan, the girlfriend Israel left behind, told them she had helped him pack a recreational vehicle with his belongings and a motor scooter. Ryan was arrested and charged with helping Israel escape. Authorities released a photo of the RV and its license plate number, and said Israel might be spotted at campgrounds or highway rest areas, possibly using the names Sam Ryan or David S. Clapp. Skepticism about his "suicide" started almost as soon as state police determined the vehicle belonged to Israel. When no body was found beneath the 150-foot-high bridge over the Hudson River, authorities said they suspected a scam. So did investors who were hoping to get some of their money back. "This is a very smart guy, a very crafty guy who was able to steal a lot of money from other smart people," said Ross Intelisano, an attorney for 20 investors in Israel's Bayou Group funds. "My gut tells me he's not the type to jump off a bridge." Within a week, the search for a body was called off, and Israel was officially declared a fugitive. A "wanted" poster and other bulletins revealed his Social Security number, his bird tattoo and his aliases: Sam Ryan and David S. Clapp. Israel's girlfriend at first told police that he left their Armonk house on June 9 to drive to prison. He'd been expected at a federal penitentiary in Massachusetts for inmates with special health care needs. After Israel stopped on Bear Mountain Bridge, near West Point about 40 miles north of New York City, surveillance video showed a second car slowly pass his SUV and then stop. Agents were hoping to enhance the images to find out what happened next. Federal officials refused to confirm reports that the driver of the second car has been questioned. They also won't go into detail about the search for Israel. But a former federal prosecutor said fugitives who carefully plan their getaways often left clues behind. "You have to be very thorough, very meticulous in setting up your escape," said Lawrence Barcella Jr., who is now a defense attorney specializing in white-collar crime. "But it's hard to do that without leaving some hint, some trail, about your thought process or even your destination. "If he went online to find out about a place, if he called there on a cell phone, they can find that out. The advances in technology and all the security upgrades since 9/11 have made it much easier to track someone down," Barcella said. He said falsified travel documents would be available to someone with money, "but again, the government is much more sensitive to that now and much more sophisticated in the detection of that. It's much harder to leave the country now than it used to be." Agents will also apply old-fashioned pressure, potentially including threats of prosecution, to Israel's friends and associates, as they already have to the girlfriend. "You know what they say, 'We have ways of making you talk,'" Barcella said. Wherever he is, Israel probably won't be able to resume a life of conspicuous consumption if he wants to evade detection. "You have to tone it down," Barcella said. "The more you spend, the easier you are to find. You also have to cut yourself off completely from your past. That means putting the people and places you love behind you. "It takes a level of mental discipline. You can't even engage in those things that are familiar. If you love to go kayaking, you may not want to go kayaking because that's a profile the feds are going to have." "It's a lot like witness protection," he said. "It works if you follow the rules, but people who are set in their ways sometimes can't handle the change in their lifestyle. They miss the familiarity, the comfort of what they were doing before." Hiding out might also be complicated by Israel's medical needs. He's had nine back surgeries, wears a pacemaker and is addicted to painkillers, according to prosecutors. His ailments - along with 2 1/2 years of cooperating with authorities - helped him get less than the maximum 30-year sentence. Judge Colleen McMahon also granted him two months to surrender to prison after he was sentenced. A co-defendant who also got 20 years was ordered to prison immediately. Calls to McMahon's chambers were not returned. Another path Israel could take - if he gives up on the RV - is to settle in a country that does not have an extradition treaty with the U.S. He could also flee to a place that is ill-equipped to deal with such a case or somewhere that might welcome his money. Jacob "Kobi" Alexander, who is accused of pocketing millions of dollars while manipulating stock options as chief executive of Comverse Technology Inc., has been living openly in Namibia with his family for two years. He is battling extradition in a slow-moving court system and funding scholarships and investing in low-income housing. "Of course, Namibia's in the African desert," Barcella said. "It's not the Costa del Sol. On the other hand, it's not the federal penitentiary, either." At the prison in Massachusetts, most inmates have jobs and the newer inmates generally get stuck with kitchen duty for their first 90 days. Whoever draws the breakfast shift has to get up at 4 or 4:30 a.m., while others sleep until 6. Colautti, the prison spokesman, said he didn't know if Israel would still be coming there if he's caught. Barcella said a tighter-security prison is more likely. "The feds don't like it when you don't show up after they put all this time and effort into prosecuting you," he said. http://www.kansas.com/508/story/440169.html |
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| wv171 | Jul 2 2008, 03:35 PM Post #6 |
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NEW YORK -- ABC News is reporting that the missing fugitive financier Sam Israel III has turned himself in Southwick, Massachusetts. Samuel Israel III disappeared early June -- hours before he was supposed to start a 20-year federal prison sentence for bilking investors in his Bayou hedge funds out of $450 million. His sentence, handed down two months ago, also included paying back $300 million. Investigators doubted a suicide almost from the moment they found Israel's 2006 GMC Envoy on the Bear Mountain Bridge over the Hudson River on June 9, though the ominous message "Suicide is Painless" was scrawled into the dust and pollen on its hood. The phrase is the title of the theme song for the "MASH" TV show, and was sung during a fake suicide in the original movie. He did not mention anything specific that suggested Israel is still alive, saying only, "The evidence doesn't point to a suicide." Story continues belowAdvertisement State police confirmed they have stopped searching the river for Israel's body. Guccione wouldn't say whether Israel was still in the United States. He said few calls have come in from the public despite a widely publicized wanted poster. But he sounded confident that Israel would be caught, saying, "Based on our track record, we always get our man." Surveillance video from the bridge showed a second car pulling past Israel's SUV and stopping, and investigators are hoping to enhance the indistinct images to see what happened next. Federal officials refuse to confirm reports that the driver of the second car has been found and questioned. The investors who lost millions with Israel's hedge funds were immediately skeptical of a suicide. Ross Intelisano, an attorney for 20 such investors, said his clients were saying, "Show me the body, I'll believe it when I see the body. http://abclocal.go.com/wpvi/story?section=...orld&id=6240862 |
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