Jury selection began on Monday morning in the fraud trial of Allen Stanford in US federal court in Houston.
The 61-year-old Stanford is charged with using his Houston-based financial empire to swindle investors of more than $7 billion. At the heart of Stanford’s alleged fraud are certificates of deposit sold by his Antigua-based Stanford International Bank Ltd to about 28,000 investors.
Among the allegations is a claim he bribed an Antiguan banking regulator to ignore irregularities.
Receivers are still trying to locate the money that was invested with the Stanford Financial Group and its affiliate companies, but indications are that Stanford’s lavish, globe-trotting lifestyle, including the sponsorship of multi-million dollar Caribbean cricket tournaments, may have consumed most of it.
