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Saturday, December 19, 2009

Allen Stanford trial set for 2011

The trial of alleged fraudster Allen Stanford will not take place until 2011, a judge has ruled.

Mr Stanford is accused of carrying out a $7 billion Ponzi scheme at his offshore bank in Antigua.

As he is deemed a flight risk by US authorities, he will spend the year before his January 2011 trial in custody.

The start date of the trial was a compromise between prosecutors, who wished to begin the trial in September 2010, while defence lawyers were pushing for a summer 2011 date in order to better prepare their case.

His chief financial officer James Davis has already pleaded guilty to fraud while Mr Stanford himself has denied all charges.

In September, he had his nose broken in a prison brawl and had to spend the weekend in hospital before being returned to his jail cell.

If convicted, Mr Stanford may have to spend the rest of his life in prison.

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