Update on Ericsson Corruption Scandal.

I wrote an article a year ago on the U.S. Department of Justice monitoring the telecommunications company Ericsson over corrupt practices in China and Djibouti. Today, Ericsson announced that the monitoring program instituted by the Justice Department has ended. According to a website called capacitymedia.com, the Department of Justice released a statement saying it was satisfied that Ericsson had met its compliance requirements. According to Ericsson’s president, Borje Ekholm, Ericsson is committing to being more transparent with its business practices in the future. Only time will tell if this is a true statement or not.

US Sanctions Ugandan Parliament Speaker.

Today, the U.S. government sanctioned the Ugandan parliament speaker Anita Among and her Husband over alleged corruption and human rights abuses. According to an article in the AP, Among, a close ally of the Ugandan president Yoweri Museveni, has been in the spotlight for receiving $894,000 in the form of per diems and “entertainment” allowances. This is a massive problem in a country that can barely fund its healthcare and education systems. According to a report in ABC, Lt General Peter Elwelu was sanctioned for allowing extrajudicial killings. Finally, three ministers were sanctioned for being involved in a bizarre scheme to steal roofing material for impoverished communities.

Vietnam Votes in New President.

Yesterday, the Vietnamese parliament voted To Lam to be the next president. Vietnam has been going through a period of massive political turmoil in recent months. According to an article in Barron’s, Lam is an anti-corruption crusader who has allegedly used his anti-corruption committee in parliament to remove anyone he sees as a threat to his political aspirations. According to a report on Aljazeera, Lam was the only candidate on the secret ballot; hence, he was a shoo-in for election. Given the nature of politics in Vietnam recently, it would not shock me if Lam was forced out of office sooner rather than later.

Slovakian Prime Minister Fico gravely injured in Assassination Attempt.

Today, the Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico was seriously injured in an attempted Assassination. According to a report in The Guardian, Fico was attending a political event in Handlova 90 miles northeast of Bratislava. Fico is viewed as a right-wing populist with a pro-Russian stance that is not dissimilar to Viktor Orban of Hungary. According to an article in the New York Times, Fico rose to power in the 1990s, leading the Smer Party, which started on the left of the political spectrum, to shift course and, after several years in opposition, adopted Anti-immigrant and anti-LGBT policies that were more in line with Putin and Orban. As of writing this, Fico’s status is unclear, but whether or not he survives attempted assassinations of European leaders is never good, despite how one may feel about their politics.

The Menendez Corruption Trial Begins.

This week, the corruption trial of Robert Menendez begins. According to a report in the AP, Menendez and his wife were arrested on bribery and corruption charges over accepting bribes from three business people, including one from Egypt. Menendez’s lawyer will claim in court that his wife was the driving force behind the bribery schemes, and he knew nothing about it. Menendez’s wife Nadine’s trial will not start until July at the earliest due to a health issue. It is unclear how the trial will play out, but whatever its outcome will ruin his reputation forever.

Vietnam Sentences Lan to Death Over Fraud.

Last Week, the Vietnamese real estate magnate Troung My Lan was sentenced to death after being found guilty in a massive financial fraud trial. Vietnam is a country that has been plagued by corruption, particularly in and around the COVID-19 pandemic. According to an AP report, Lan was illegally involved with the Saigon Joint Stock Commercial Bank and set up 2,500 loans, which caused the bank to lose $27 billion. Lan grew famous in Vietnam by founding the real estate firm Van Thinh Phat. The Ho Chi Minh City court leveled such a harsh sentence because Lan was at the head of a well-organized criminal network, and there was no chance of her repaying the court-ordered $26 million to the bank. According to Al Jazeera, her lawyers have 15 days to appeal the death sentence.

SBF Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison.

Sam Bankman-Fried was sentenced to 25 years in prison, capping a swift fall from grace after being found guilty of fraud and money laundering charges. Federal prosecutors had been aiming for a much higher sentence, arguing that the nature of his crimes meant that he should spend most of the rest of his life behind bars. According to a report by the New York Times, SBF will also have to forfeit $11.4 billion in assets and will most likely be sent to a low or medium-security prison near his parent’s home in San Francisco. According to a report by the AP, SBF will not serve his sentence in a maximum security prison due to his autism, and his public persona would make him a target in prison. Despite the collapse of FTX and the downfall of SBF, I still believe that the Cryptocurrency industry has a long way to go to establish any form of trust that people’s investments can be handled securely.

Menendez drops out of Democratic Primary.

Yesterday, the embattled New Jersey Senator Robert Menendez announced that he will not run in the upcoming Democratic senate race. According to a report in the New York Times, Menendez realized that due to the international bribery charges he was facing, he was unlikely to win the primary with the democratic party distancing themselves from him. However, according to a report in The Hill, there are strong rumors that Menendez may attempt to run for senate as an independent. Menendez has June 4^th to obtain the minimum 800 signatures needed to mount a campaign. Given the scandal surrounding Menendez, I don’t see how he can run again for senate. Surely, his political career is over at this point.

Prosecutors in SBF Case Want a 40 to 50-Year Sentence.

On Friday, Federal prosecutors in the Sam Bankman-Fried fraud case want him to serve 40 to 50 years in prison. He faces a possible maximum sentence of 110 years. According to a report in the New York Times, the federal probation service has recommended that SBF face 100 years in prison, which equates to a life sentence. SBF’s lawyers, unsurprisingly, are calling for a much more lenient sentence of six and a half years. I would have to assume that SBF’s sentence will be in the 40 or 50-year range, given the extent of the fraud he committed.

Trump Fraud Trial Update.

A few days ago, Donald Trump testified in his fraud trial in New York City. By all accounts, Trump made a spectacle of the proceedings and lashed out at everyone from the judge to the New York State Attorney General Letitia James. According to a report in the Washington Post, Trump, instead of mounting any credible defense, used the proceeding to try and score political points to bolster his election credentials. The Post article states that Trump may be using this trial as a dry run for his conduct in his upcoming criminal trials. The trial continues.