Stanley Chais, 82, is a private investor who has been active in a wide range of Israeli and American Jewish charitable activities over the past 30 years. Apparently, over the past thirty years, Mr. Chais has combined his business activities with a wide range of philanthropic endeavors for the benefit of Jewish communities in the United States, the former Soviet Union (FSU) and Israel. He believes that “all Jews are responsible for each other", and therefore, he, who can afford it, should support areas that promote learning and culture.
Stanley Chais also is the head of a limited partnership or investment management firm, Brighton Co. of Beverly Hills, California, that apparently served as a "feeder fund' to Bernie Madoff's investment scheme. It had invested and hence lost about $250 million with Bernie Madoff. From The Los Angeles Times, one might learn that apparently Mr. Chais previously served on more than one charitable boards with Bernie Madoff. Stanley Chais and his firm also have been sued by one Michael Chaleff of Arlington, VA, a former Justice Department lawyer. Mr. Chaleff's lawyer, a certain Reed Kathrien, with the Oakland firm of Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro, indicates that many of Brighton's investors were in the investment business and lost small fortunes "because they'd been in [the investment funds] for 10 or 20 or 30 years."
According to the suit, Mr. Chaleff was part of a 50-member investment group called CMG that lost $75 to $80 million it gave to Brighton Co. Mr. Chais apparently managed about 10 such groups of investors and substantially all of those collective funds were invested in Bernie Madoff's fraudulent scheme.
The class-action suit filed on Mr. Chaleff's behalf alleges that the Brighton firm was "aware of, or recklessly disregarded, the misuse and mismanagement of investment funds." Subsequent to Bernie Madoff's arrest, Stanley Chais indicated that he had not only personally invested with Madoff, but also had "facilitated" others who desired to do likewise. He also claimed that he and his family also were "swindled" and had lost "a huge amount of money."
A bit ominously for Mr. Chais, both the Securities and Exchange Commission and the California Department of Corporations reported that they could not find any records of Chais registering as an investment advisor or broker. Also of concern, Mr. Chais apparently took a piece of the partnership's profits as management fees, usually according to one investor about 3.8%, from a partnership that was a "kind of private, hush-hush fund" geared toward "private arbitrage accounts." That same investor indicated that he and his wife thought the partnership funds were invested in currencies, stocks and other securities. More ominously, Bernie Madoff's name and his investment firm never were mentioned.
According to The Wall Street Journal, New Jersey state Sen. Loretta Weinberg lost her entire life savings in the Madoff scheme. She too had invested her savings with Stanley Chais in what he called "the arbitrage partnerships." Until the time of Bernie Madoff's arrest, Ms. Weinberg had never heard of Bernard Madoff or that Mr. Chais had invested her funds in the Madoff scheme.
Toomre Capital Markets LLC ("TCM") notes that this is the fourth of the Madoff "feeder funds" that did not disclose (or at best had very obscure disclosure) that the funds in fact were invested with Bernie Madoff. First, there were the investor notes peddled by Avellino & Bienes ("A&B"). Then, there were the allegations that the Fairfield Greenwich Group did not (or at best in a limited way) disclose that Bernie Madoff had received the bulk of their "feeder funds." More recently, it has been disclosed that Ezra Merkin and his three firms, Gabriel Capital Corp., Ariel Fund Ltd. and Ascot Partners L.P. have been subpoenaed and/or sued for entrusting billions of dollars of his investors' funds with Madoff. NYU has sued Mr. Merkin alleging that he did not disclose that he had turned over substantial of the investment from their endowment over to Madoff.
A common theme to each of these "feeder funds" is a lack of disclosure to their investors about Bernie Madoff being the ultimate "investment manger". The recurrence of this theme makes one wonder whether they were not in fact in cahoots with one another and Bernard Madoff. Each of the principals behind each of these "feeder fund" organizations became fairly rich and had some type of direct or personal relationship with Bernard Madoff. Is the investing public really to believe that there never were any discussions about keeping the Madoff scheme "hush-hush" and there never were any hard questions about just how Madoff supposedly made those amazingly consistent returns?
But there truly never was a hint that one man alone could commit such an amazingly large fraud against so many people for more than thirty years? Really??? Call Toomre Capital Markets LLC highly skeptical of the "feeder fund" defenses offered to date. The weeks and months to come certainly will be interesting as the various litigation matters move forward. Reader comments and thoughts are most welcome.
Partners in Crimes. ( Update.)
Update. 18th Feb.2010.
PARTNERS IN CRIMES.
Pictet & Cie Bank.
Ivan Pictet.
Nicolas Pictet.
Jacques de Saussure.
Jean – Francois Demole.
Renaud de Planta.
Philippe Bertherat..
Pictet & Cie.- claim they are the “Rolls Royce”of swiss banks.
Swiss Banks or more correctly Swizz banks.
Swizz. ---- “ a great disappointment.” or a “ fraud.”
Fraud. ---“ an intentional deception or dishonesty.”— “a crime.”
Crime. ---“ an act committed or omitted in violation of a law.”
Serious Crimes .
Conspiring to pervert the Course of Justice.
Perverting the Course of Justice.
Contempt of Court.
Swiss Criminal Code.
Article. 162. Swiss Criminal Code. Confidential Business Information.
Article. 320. Swiss Criminal Code. Occupational Confidentiality.
Article. 97. Swiss Criminal Code . – to compensate for damages
incurred for “ violating its duty of secrecy.”
Fine and imprisonment for the banker pursuant to the banking act and criminal code.
Damages for the client pursuant to the duty of care.
*** The Swiss Public Attorney automatically begins prosecution as soon as the offence is made known. ( the exception being).
The Rolls Royce of Swiss Banks. ( Swizz Banks.)
Pictet & Cie.-------
Ivan Pictet.
Nicolas Pictet.
Jacques de Saussure.
Jean - Francois Demole.
Renaud de Planta.
Philippe Bertherat.
They have broken both the Federal Laws and Banking Laws of Switzerland.
Also breaking English Law seems of no relevance to them even though they have three international financial operations in the centre of London.
Pictet & Cie Bank & Peters & Peters.
The bank and it’s officials deliberately withheld crucial documents requested under a High Court order.The bank and it’s officials deliberately withheld evidence from the Police , and one of it’s account managers Susan Broadhead gave a false witness statement to the police.
Another one of it’s managers Nicholas Campiche ( Now Head of Pictet – Alternative Investments.)concocted a letter pretending to be a client and closed his account. The senior partner (Ivan Pictet.)sought to have numerous documents destroyed,along with those copies held in their London office of P.A.M. Initially stating that they were forgeries then their lawyers Peters & Peters – Monty Raphael – and the barrister Charles Flint.Q.C.) –later had to admit in Court that the documents were genuine.
British Parliament. Hansard .29th March 2007.
Barry Sheerman .M.P.—quote.
---------“ Constituents of mine have lost £2 million through fraud. The fraudster used Pictet & Cie - - a French Bank - - and Pictet Asset Management to back the fraud being perpetrated.””
(1) It is a criminal offence for a bank to knowingly act for an undischarged criminal bankrupt in so far as it seeks to assist that criminal bankrupt in the fraudulent movement of monies. ( Money Laundering.)
(2) It is a criminal offence for a bank to lie to the police and the bankrupts trustee in bankruptcy in so far as any knowledge of, or dealings with the bank was refuted .
(3) A bank can be guilty of Contempt of Court if it fails to comply fully with the Courts order for discovery .
(4) The banks contempt is further compounded if it fails to address its error after it is specifically drawn to the to its solicitors attention. ( Monty Raphael).
(5) It is a criminal offence under the Financial Services Act to seek to destroy evidence that might be relevant to an investigation .
(6) It is a criminal offence not to relinquish control of funds to the Trustee immediately the fact of the bankruptcy is drawn to the banks attention.
(7) It is a criminal offence to lie or otherwise obfuscate the lawful and proper enquiries of the F.S.A.
In the F.S.A. cover up , they concluded that there had been “ Rogue” elements in Pictet & Cie’s , London operations . They had been moved from their London Office so who was there left to prosecute. “ Unbelievable.”
On Dec 9th,2008. the complaint was sent to 150 Members of the House Of Lords and 230 Members of Parliament.
*** We thank --David Cameron. M.P. ( Canary Wharf Speech.) Dec. 15th. 2008.
(1) Bankers who behave irresponsibly should face professional consequences.
(2) If anyone is found to have behaved criminally they must be prosecuted.
(3) The F.S.A and the Serious Fraud Office should be following up every lead,
investigating every suspect transaction .
(4) We need to make it 100% clear –those who break the law should face
prosecution.
(5) That we make sure we root out any wrongdoing that may have happened, whoever
is involved, however high or well connected they may be.
Serious Crimes .
Conspiring to pervert the Course of Justice.
Perverting the Course of Justice.
Contempt of Court.
The Establishment “ Cover up crimes”.
The ‘Doyens’ of the establishment.’ ( Ivan Pictet and Monty Raphael.)
Ivan Pictet.
Managing partner in Pictet & Cie Bank . * 5th Feb. 2010. to retire from bank.
President of the Geneva Financial Centre.
World Bank.committee member.
United Nations. Investment Committee member,
Vice President – Global Humanitarian Forum.
Member of the Henokiens.
Blackstone Group --- Board Member.
Past- President – Geneva Private Bankers association.
Past –President – Geneva Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
Monty Raphael. ( Peters & Peters.)
Quote.” ---- Doyen of U.K. Fraud lawyers.
Head of Fraud and Regulatory Dept. Steps down as Head. May 2009.
Member of Board of Directors of the Fraud Advisory panel.
Member of the Law Society of England & Wales.
International Bar Association Member.
Past President—London Criminal Court Solicitors Association.
Past Chairman ---of Anti Corruption Committee.
Founder of Business Crime Committee of the International Bar
Association.
Written Parliamentary Questions received by the table office ..
(1) To ask the secretary of state what steps he is taking to ensure that Swiss Banks such as Pictet & Cie do not evade criminal prosecution under EU law even when the illegal act is committed by a London based subsidiary.
(2)To ask the secretary of state what steps he is taking to protect the rights of UK citizens who seek redress following criminal activities by Swiss banks with subsidiary offices located in London.
On Dec 9th,2008. the complaint was sent to 150 Members of the House Of Lords and 230 Members of Parliament.
On Aug 19th.2009.another complainants file regarding the “cover up” was forwarded to the same 380 members.
We started our campaign in June 2008 -- via the “net” to highlight our fight to get “justice”. In our second year campaign we hoped to reveal further damning evidence . Due to there being an on going Police investigation into our complaint we are at this moment unable to place dozens of documents on to the “net”. Again we thank other “ E- Mailers” for their information in relation to our campaign.
Quote. ( America’s Top Lawyer .)
You can be the richest man in the world with the best lawyers that money can buy but you cannot win against a man who has got nothing left to lose and is telling the truth.
• Ivan Pictet. Announces stepping down from Pictet & Cie. 5th Feb 2010.
• Monty Raphael. Steps down as head . May. 2009.
Full Story.
Go to search box on “Google” and insert ( Ivan Pictet / Monty Raphael) or
insert ( Pictet & Cie / Monty Raphael ) - - then try it on “Yahoo”.
Or try on Yahoo. - - - ( Charles Flint Q.C.) and ( Nicholas Campiche.)
greed at others expence
They all knew it was all illegal. The returns, no info how it was invested, please Fairfield, Merkin, Chais, they were all pimps, and Jaffe dressed like one. Nobody ever disclosed anything to there investors,who lost all there money. They used charities to build up there criminal presence, for every dollar to charity they stole a thousand. Chais,Picower all criminals, and Merkin a disgrace to the Jewish race. The SEC is run by a bunch of school/children, they never did a simple look into anything that was so obvious. Where did the trades occur , prove where the money is, they should be hung!!