IQBAL - User contributions [en]

Feds: Ex-UN official s relatives indicted in bribe scheme

2018-06-25T01:57:39Z

MaryanneEason2:

NEW YORK (AP) - Two relatives of former U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon were charged in an indictment [http://www.vtr.org.vn/cam-nang-du-lich-bac-kinh-5-ngay-4-dem.html vtr.org.vn] unsealed Tuesday with plotting to bribe a Middle East official to influence the $800 million sale of a building complex in Vietnam. Ban's nephew, Joo Hyun Bahn, was released on $250,000 bail over the objections of prosecutors, who sought to deny bail on the grounds that he is a flight risk and a financial threat to his community. Though charged, Bahn's father, Ban Ki Sang, was not in custody. Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Noble told U.S. Magistrate Judge Kevin Nathaniel Fox that Bahn was willing to do anything to succeed in business, including trying to pay $2.5 million in bribes to rescue the failed $800 million real estate deal. Joo Hyun Bahn, nephew of former U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, leaves federal court in New York, Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2017. Federal prosecutors in New York have charged two relatives of Ki-moon with plotting to bribe a Middle East official to influence the $800 million sale of a building complex in Vietnam. (AP Photo/Larry Neumeister) According to the indictment, Bahn and his father plotted from March 2013 to May 2015 to induce a foreign official to try to persuade his country's sovereign wealth fund to rescue the real estate deal. It said a $500,000 bribe paid to a local businessman to arrange a $2 million bribe of the foreign official was instead wasted on lavish expenses by the businessman, who did not have the connections he boasted about. The indictment alleged that Bahn's father, a senior executive at Keangnam Enterprises Co. Limited, a South Korean construction company, went to his son for help in 2013 when Keangnam was experiencing a liquidity crisis. The indictment said Bahn would earn a commission of at least $[http://www.vtr.org.vn/cam-nang-du-lich-bac-kinh-5-ngay-4-dem.html du lịch Bắc Kinh 5 ngày 4 đêm] million if he could secure an investor for Landmark 72, the Vietnam building complex, which included a 72-story commercial office building that was then the tallest building in the Indochina Peninsula and had cost Keangnam more than $1 billion to construct. Prosecutors said Bahn repeatedly lied to Keangnam and its creditors about the status of the potential deal, making them think the Vietnam complex was about to be bought. When the sale never materialized, Keangnam was forced to enter court receivership in South Korea, the indictment said. Noble said a nine-count indictment [https://Www.Vocabulary.com/dictionary/including%20charges including charges] that Bahn, also known as Dennis Bahn, violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, engaged in money laundering and committed wire fraud could result in a prison sentence of between nine and 10 years. "He's a liar. He is a master of deceit and we believe poses a very high risk of flight," Noble said. The prosecutor said Bahn, a New Jersey resident, made incriminating statements after his arrest to FBI agents about a case in which he is accused of paying a $500,000 bribe to a local businessman, forging documents and stealing over $200,000 from one of his clients. Defense lawyer Julia Gatto cast her client's statement to the FBI in a positive light, saying Bahn was cooperative after his arrest. She argued that her 38-year-old client had deep roots in the New York area, where he has lived for the past 18 years, attaining lawful permanent resident status and raising young children with his wife while earning $9,000 monthly through his work in commercial real estate. She said he has opened his own firm with a partner. She said he also teaches undergraduate students at New York University and needed to prepare for the start of classes later this month. Fox agreed to a bail package that required the posting of $10,000 in cash or property. He also rejected the government's request for electronic monitoring of Bahn. Advertisement

Tory rebels urged to back Theresa May in crunch Brexit votes

2018-06-22T21:57:33Z

MaryanneEason2:

Two senior Conservatives from the Leave and Remain wings of the party have come together to urge Tory MPs to back Theresa May in a series of crunch Commons votes on Brexit. Former home secretary Amber Rudd, a leading Remain supporter, and ex-party leader Iain Duncan Smith, a long-standing Brexiteer, warned defeat could lead to the fall of the Government. In a joint article for The Sunday Telegraph, they said that voting to overturn or water down a series of amendments inserted by the Lords into the EU (Withdrawal) Bill should be a �no brainer�. Iain Duncan Smith was among those who backed a Leave vote (Stefan Rousseau/PA) They said Labour would be quick to exploit any setback for the Government for their own purposes. �Jeremy Corbyn will do everything he can to stop us,� they warned. �That includes cynically trying to frustrate the Brexit process for his own political ends, as he will try to do next week when the Commons votes again on the EU (Withdrawal) Bill. �So it behoves us all to demonstrate discipline and unity of purpose in support of the Prime Minister. [http://www.vtr.org.vn/cam-nang-du-lich-bac-kinh-5-ngay-4-dem.html tour bắc kinh từ hà nội] �We cannot allow ourselves to become divided and risk losing the precious chance to go on implementing policies that transform lives.� While Amber Rudd supported the Remain side (Stefan Rousseau/PA) Ministers - who have accepted just one of the 15 amendments to legislation - are confident of winning most of the votes when the bill returns to the Commons on Tuesday and Wednesday. However, pro-EU Tory rebels believe they could be vulnerable on key measures including the customs union and a requirement for Parliament to have a decisive say over what happens next if it rejects a final Brexit deal. With the [http://Www.Google.com/search?q=Government%20dependent&btnI=lucky Government dependent] on the DUP for its majority, Tory whips are expected to crank up the pressure on potential rebels to ensure they have the numbers when it comes to the divisions. They may be boosted by support from a handful of pro-Brexit Labour MPs. Former deputy prime minister Damian Green wrote in the Sunday Express that the majority of the crucial votes would �pass easily�. He said: �The Westminster air is again full of the scent of rebellions, chaos and catastrophic Government defeats. �I predict they simply won�t materialise for one simple reason: the whips can count. �If they think that the Government won�t have a majority, they advise a change in policy.� Theresa May, in Quebec for the G7 summit, denounced the unelected peers who passed the amendments, accusing them of going far beyond their role as a revising chamber. �Let�s remember what the Withdrawal Bill is for: it�s about delivering a statute book that is ready for Brexit day,� she said. �Of course, the Lords has a revising role to play - but some of the amendments that were passed and the comments that were made went far beyond that. �You had peers talking about stopping Brexit or trying to tie the Government�s hands in the negotiations. �This Government is delivering on the decision made by the country in the referendum to leave the EU and we will not accept anything that prevents us from taking back control of our money, laws and borders.� Theresa May In their article, Ms Rudd and Mr Duncan Smith said the bill was not about competing visions of the future, but a �technical measure� to ensure there was �legal certainty� when Britain left the EU in March 2019. �The disagreements in the party do not extend to whether we should leave, only how we do it,� they said. �So for Conservatives of every outlook, givingour full support to the Government this week should be a no-brainer. The House of Commons backed the Withdrawal Bill at third reading with a clear majority. Not a single Conservative voted against it.� For Labour, shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer said pro-EU Tory MPs had a [http://www.vtr.org.vn/cam-nang-du-lich-bac-kinh-5-ngay-4-dem.html vtr.org.vn] chance to alter the direction of the negotiations if they voted with the opposition on the key amendments. �If Tory MPs who care about these amendments vote with us there is a real chance for Parliament to change the course of the Brexit negotiations and bring some order where there is real chaos,� he told BBC One�s The Andrew Marr Show. Advertisement

User:MaryanneEason2

2018-06-22T21:57:25Z

MaryanneEason2: Created page with "Hello, I'm Maryanne, a 28 year old from Praia Grande, Brazil. My hobbies include (but are not limited to) Musical instruments, Origami and watching CSI. Also visit m..."

Hello, I'm Maryanne, a 28 year old from Praia Grande, Brazil. My hobbies include (but are not limited to) Musical instruments, Origami and watching CSI. Also visit my weblog ... [http://www.vtr.org.vn/cam-nang-du-lich-bac-kinh-5-ngay-4-dem.html tour bắc kinh từ hà nội]