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The IRS wants victims of Marc Harris to contact it as it expands its investigation into Harris, which led to his criminal indictment in Florida on May 6, 2003 for 13 counts of money laundering. Harris
was arrested in Nicaragua on June 10 and expelled to the United States, where he was immediately arrested. He has been denied bail and is currently in custody in Miami awaiting trial.
Anyone who is a victim should contact Arthur Vandesande, the IRS Agent in charge of the investigation, at +1 305-982-5235 or arthur.vandesande@ci.irs.gov.
Below are a number of documents, including internal management memos, court rulings, depositions and financial documents, concerning Marc Harris and The Harris Organization financial services group
of Panama, which defrauded its clients of tens of millions of dollars.
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Superseding Indictment: Filed against Marc Harris at the United States District Court for the Southern
District of Florida on September 30, 2003.
Project Joshua: 40-page re-organization plan dated August 7, 2002 as The Harris Organization restructures in the face of mounting debts.
Legal Disputes: Details of clients who, at July 31, 2002, were in legal disputes with The Harris Organization about being unable to redeem their investments.
Bank Balances: Details of bank accounts - and balances - maintained by The Harris Organization at various financial institutions as of August 5, 2002.
Suspect Clients: Details, including account numbers, of Marc Harris clients who have been involved in schemes that have been subject to criminal and/or civil
legal action.
Lawrence Boulanger: Convicted drug dealer Lawrence Boulanger, a.k.a. John Berlingeri,
who is a preferred shareholder and client of The Harris Organization, writes to thank a Harris employee for refusing to give details of his accounts to his estranged wife and then writes again asking why his request to liquidate his preferred shares has not been answered.
Lawrence Boulanger - Asset Forfeiture: Details of Boulanger's drug dealing activities are contained in this asset forfeiture application
by the United States Government. Particularly fascinating are details of how robbers stole approximately $1 million in cash from Boulanger's home after they beat up his wife until the whereabouts of the safe - and its combination - were revealed.
Lawrence Boulanger - Money Laundering: Apart from his drug trafficking conviction, Boulanger is also under current indictment
for alleged money laundering.
Lawrence Boulanger - False Passport: Boulanger is also under current indictment relating to allegedly obtaining and using
a false United States passport.
Wallace Stull and James Somerville: Details of the drug dealing convictions of Stull and Somerville, who have been preferred shareholders and clients
of The Harris Organization.
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Marc Harris is now using the name 'Mitchell Astor Gilbert Trust Co.' to conduct business, headquartered in Managua, Nicaragua.
On June 17, 2002, the following Eviction Notice was placed on the front door of The Harris Organization's offices in Panama City for non-payment of
$47,000 in rent. Since some of the text is unclear in this scanned image, here is a transcript (in Spanish).
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Below are four documents which show that the US government gave assistance to the Panamanian government in investigating OBNR for alleged criminal libel against The Harris Organization financial
services group.
Request
for Judicial Assistance 1 - document relating to a request for assistance by the Panamanian authorities in investigating OBNR principal David Marchant, who they charged with criminal libel for his exposé of Marc Harris. The criminal complaint was served on Marchant
in 1998 and nothing has happened since. (JPEG file)
Request
for Judicial Assistance 2 - another document relating to the Panamanian request for assistance. (JPEG file)
Request
for Judicial Assistance 3 - another document relating to the Panamanian request for assistance. (JPEG file)
Request
for Judicial Assistance 4 - another document relating to the Panamanian request for assistance. (JPEG file)
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Harris Organization Loses Appeal against loss of libel judgment to Offshore Business News & Research.
Harris Organization/OBNR libel judgment from Judge Michael Moore, sitting in the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida.
Client Victor Wojtas complains about being unable to redeem investments placed with The Harris
Organization.
Client Albert Jackson complains about being unable to redeem investments placed with The Harris Organization.
Bogus insurance provided by Threshold Insurance Services, which was operated by The Harris Organization. Ilka Barria, Threshold's President, is also an officer of THO.
Jeffrey Mann, who operated Lifeblood Biomedical, was sentenced to three years in prison for fraud on January 23, 2001 by a Florida court.
'Extremely Sensitive Memorandum' by Jonathan Brinkman on the accounting practices of the Special Projects Department of The Harris Organization, where clients' investments
were treated as income by The Harris Organization .
Internal management memo written in late 1996/early 1997 complaining of a liquidity crisis.
Internal management memo from Marc Harris to in-house counsel Gilberto Boutin authorizing the filing of 'criminal extortion charges' against three Harris Organization
officers. Boutin himself was subject to similar action by Marc Harris several months later.
Internal management memo discussing an alleged "liquidity problem" and alleged illegalities at The Harris Organization.
Internal management memo accusing The Harris Organization of over-valuing assets.
Internal management memo accusing The Harris Organization of "co-mingling of client funds and unauthorized use of client funds", i.e. borrowing clients' assets
without permission or compensation.
Balance Sheet of Third World Trust Co. which OBNR claimed at trial showed that more than $17 million had been misappropriated from clients by the Harris Organization as
of December 24, 1996.
Order suspending the Florida CPA license of Marc M. Harris for negligence, incompetence and misconduct. This Order Includes full details of the complaint made against
him.
Letter from a Canadian businessman about his not-very-flattering perception of the Harris Organization's claims vis-à-vis doing business in Cuba.
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'Audited' 1997 financial statements of Marc M. Harris et Cie S. A. and its subsidiaries.
The Harris Matrix - controversial asset protection strategy of The Harris Organization that OBNR claimed at trial blatantly advocated the fraudulent conveyance of assets.
Deposition given in March, 1999 by Larry Gandolfi, Corporate Representative of The Harris Organization, as part of its libel action against Offshore Business News & Research.
(550 pages)
Part One of a deposition given in December, 1998 by David Marchant, President of Offshore Business News & Research, as part of our defense against The Harris Organization's
libel lawsuit.
Part Two of a deposition given in December, 1998 by David Marchant, President of Offshore Business News & Research, as part of our defense against The Harris Organization's
libel lawsuit.
Tony Vigna Plea Bargain: Official agreement for leniency for this client of The Harris Organization in return for co-operating with the US authorities.
Joseph Vigna Plea Bargain: Similar agreement to his father's (see above).
Miami-Dade County Court: Search results showing that Harris left behind small
debts in the United States before moving to Panama.
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 Quick Reference
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 Most Recent Documents
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Latest News
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Believe it or not!
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What the US Government is supporting
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Other Documents
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Editor's
Note
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Marc M. Harris essentially built his business by offering to hide the assets of U.S. tax-evaders and criminals whom few others would do business with and then not returning them.
He left his native United States in or around 1989/1990 for Panama, where he proceeded to defraud his foreign clients of tens of millions of dollars for more than a decade before fleeing to Nicaragua in 2002.
Harris was exposed in OffshoreAlert in March, 1998 and, the next month, his group filed a libel lawsuit at Federal Court in Miami, Florida.
The plaintiff was not Harris individually but three of his offshore corporations, two of which were registered in the British Virgin Islands and the other in Nevis.
This maneuver allowed Harris to avoid coming to Florida to testify at a trial which was held in July, 1999 and culminated in a resounding judgment in favor of OffshoreAlert's publisher.
During his time in Panama, most of his companies bore the 'Harris' name. However, it has become so synonymous with financial crime that he now operates under other names.
One to watch out for is Mitchell Astor Gilbert Trust, which is registered in Nevis, one of the few jurisdictions that allows companies to be formed with the word 'trust' in their title without requiring a license.
As with many financial criminals, Harris would have the public believe that he is the victim of a vast conspiracy by people who are 'out to get him'.
He paid local 'journalists' to write what he told them, no matter how far-fetched. Some of the silliest articles were published by Tomas A. Cabal, a Professor of Marketing at the University of Panama, who, when challenged to support his articles by OffshoreAlert, could not
do so and admitted in writing that he had received $10,000 from Harris. |
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