Frederiksen and the Danish police believe that a large portion of the missing millions from Bagger’s leasing fraud were laundered by Ljungman through companies operated in the US by Swedish businessman Carl Freer, one of which was Getfugu Technologies.
FBI enters Stein Bagger case
Thursday, 25 March 2010 12:41 RC News
cphpost.dk
US investigators have offered to split whatever they can recover from the infamous IT Factory fraud with Danish authorities
The US Federal Bureau of Investigation is preparing to pursue the business partner of fraud-convicted businessman Stein Bagger, to recover missing funds of up to 52 million dollars, according to financial daily Børsen.
Denmark’s fraud police have given the FBI information leading to the money via Mikael Ljungman – whose guilt or innocence in the year-long IT Factory case will be decided tomorrow by the High Court – who operated the company through which Bagger defrauded numerous banks and investors.
Bagger, who was IT Factory’s CEO, was sentenced to seven years in prison for his role in the fraud last year.
According to Børsen, the investigation is partly being conducted through the American Embassy in Copenhagen, where thousands of pages of documentation regarding the case are being reviewed. The FBI reportedly offered the Danish police half of what they recover in exchange for the information, although that agreement must first be approved by Boris Frederiksen, the lawyer acting on behalf of the state for the recovery of IT Factory’s assets.
Frederiksen and the Danish police believe that a large portion of the missing millions from Bagger’s leasing fraud were laundered by Ljungman through companies operated in the US by Swedish businessman Carl Freer, one of which was Getfugu Technologies. According to Per Justensen, Denmark’s deputy attorney general, Freer took out 52 million dollars worth of patents on products developed by Ljungman’s Media Power company.
Prosecutors say that Media Power’s assets were built upon those of its subsidiary Ecommerce, which itself was supported by the fraudulent funds of IT Factory.
Immediately after taking out the patents, Freer sold them to his own company Getfugu, against shares valued at 67 million dollars.
Ljungman has pleaded not guilty to the fraud charges and Freer’s attorneys have denied all allegations of wrongdoing on his and his companies’ parts. However, both are also currently involved in civil lawsuits in the US relating to the alleged fraud.
According to Børsen, Freer has fraud convictions in Sweden and Germany, but these were apparently not revealed through his US visa.
Now that US authorities are aware of Freer’s criminal past, many experts believe they want him kept in the country to make it easier to recover the missing millions and ultimately prosecute him for the fraud.
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