Webmaster's Note: In the Samoan News... We have to say, they certainly do know how to put their spin on our story, eh? Read with caution and suspicion... unless of course you consider yourself to be a hapless victim who was "bilked", but then again, they keep using that word "allegedly" so we are supposed to all understand that these are only "allegations", RIGHT? ya, shore, youbetcha.
What we know is, the name of the game is FOLLOW the MONEY... Also of interest is the new "total" implied by that $76M figure... hmmmm...

Over $6 million released from PIDB funds frozen in Samoa

by Fili Sagapolutele

(APIA, Samoa) - A US federal court-appointed trustee now has jurisdiction over at least $6 million of the funds frozen in Samoa allegedly because it is part of the haul from an alleged investment scheme that bilked $76 million from more than 2,500 mainland investors.

The trustee was appointed to oversee any and all money, property and assets seized by the federal government on the mainland and abroad to help pay victims of the investment scheme that was allegedly instigated by former resident William Hugh Cravens and three co-defendants.

Cravens is the president of Private International Development Ban of American Samoa (PIDB).

Sources told the Samoa News in Apia on Thursday that the $6.7 million was released from the World Culture Center-Samoa, Inc., bank account at the ANZ Bank in Apia. Elizabeth Phillips was the main signatory for the account.

Phillips was one of the five defendants in the case but she has since entered a guilty plea and will be sentenced in January. As part of the guilty plea, she had also signed federal court documents in Seattle to release any funds and property in her name including the account in Samoa.

Sources who asked not be identified said the US Department of Justice along with some overseas attorney worked on the release of the money under Phillips' name and it was released about a month ago.

At the request of the US government, the Samoa Attorney General's Office in May of last year froze money in accounts at the ANZ Bank that were identified by the federal government as belonging to Cravens, John Wayne Zidar, John Wesley Mathews, Steven Craig Moreland and Elizabeth Phillips.

In September this year, a new superseding indictment was filed against Cravens, Zidar, Mathews and Moreland. The indictment included new information such as PIDB having $6.4 million in its ANZ Bank account. The indictment also listed the World Culture Centers account at $6.7 million and five other accounts.

Neither Samoa's attorney general Brenda Heather-Latu nor Damas Potoi of Samoa's AG's office, who are handling the case, could be reached for comments.

ANZ Bank in Apia has also declined to comment on the case, saying that all clients information are confidential.

Assistant US attorney Carl Blackstone confirmed in a telephone interview from Seattle that money has been released from Samoa that was banked under Phillips' name. Blackstone could not provide at the time the total amount transferred.

Blackstone said Cravens continues to refuse to sign any documents to release the money under his name in Samoa because he believes that would be an admission of guilt. He claims this would be a violation of his Fifth Amendment rights and will incriminate him later.

Blackstone said Cravens has also refused any deal and he still plans to file a civil lawsuit against the Samoa government for placing a freeze on PIDB accounts and other funds under his name. Craven's attorney announced the intended suit last year against the Samoa government.

For now Cravens, Zidar, Mathews and Moreland, who are all held without bail, are scheduled for jury trial on March 25th in a Seattle federal court and Blackstone said "this date is pretty much firm" and he expects no more postponements in the trial.

Blackstone said the federal court has granted Cravens another detention hearing but no date has been set. The prosecutor plans to object to any release for Cravens, nor any of the co-defendants left in the case.

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