Thursday, December 18, 2008

If Madoff's Accountant High Tailed It to Switzerland, He Made a Big Mistake

John Carney is reporting that Bernie Madoff's accountant, David Friehling, is nowhere to be found.

He hasn't been in his office and doesn't appear to be at his home.

Rockland County District Attorney Thomas Zugibe, who is investigating the firm, said this week he did not know where Friehling was and had not had any contact with him. Zugibe's investigators were at the Friehling office Monday morning, knocking fruitlessly at the locked door, AP reports.

Carney speculates:

We're guessing Friehling has fled to Switzerland, the country that notoriously refused to extradict Marc Rich because his crimes were purely economic.
If Friehling is in Switzerland, it's a big mistake.

Marc Rich wasn't protected by the Swiss because of an "economic crime". Rich committed tax evasion. Tax evasion is not a crime in Switzerland, so they won't turn over tax evaders. Financial fraud is a big time crime in Switzerland. If Friehling is in Switzerland and it can be proved he was in on the scam, the Swiss will arrest Friehling and ship him back to the U.S. faster than the ferry traveling from Lausanne, Switzerland can cross Lake Geneva and reach the shore of Evian, France.

If you absolutely, positively do not want to be turned over to U.S. authorities, you have to go to Iran or, God help you, North Korea.


2 comments:

  1. If you absolutely, positively do not want to be turned over to U.S. authorities, you have to go to Iran or, God help you, North Korea.

    ...or get yourself elected president.

    ReplyDelete
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