19910903a Fbi Memo Regarding Bcci And Hamilton Taft

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FD-36 (Rev. 8-29-/15)

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PRECEDENCE:

TRANSMIT VIA: Teletype Facsimile

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CLASSIF!CAnON:

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Imin~diate

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TO!' SECRET SECRET coNFiDENTIAL

UNCLAS EFT 0 UNCLAS

9/3/91

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SM:::, WMFO (N'ilMHA)

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SAC, SAN FRANCISCO

SUBJECT

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HIDDEN INTEREs'r,

(29B-WF-171994)~

(196A-SF-93255) ::__

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Title changed add HIDDEN INTEREST, MAJOH CASE 38. RE Teletype from DIRECTOR FBI to ALL FIELD OFFICES dated JUly 26, 1991.

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Enclosed for WMFO-NV!1RA are: one COPY of letter fromC ~ a copy of CONNIE C. ARMSTRONG, JR. 's petition dated February 16, 1989 and a copy of the September 3, 1991 Oakland Tribune article referencing BCCT.

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This office has received a letter froml I financial connections between HAMILTON TAFT COMPANY, ---=-:l CONNIE C. ARMSTRONG. JR. J I I and the BANK OF CREDIT AND COMMERCE, INTERNATIONAL (BCClY. The letter was supposedly mailed to your division in August of 1991. ---~alleging

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wr1io (NVMRA) (Enc'i'osures 3) " 2 - SAN F'RANCISCO (1 - 29B-WF-171994; 1 - 196A-SF-93255 Sub F) HLH/wlh 2 -

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C:======:J, is one of the complainants of our investigation of HAI1ILTON TAFT COMPANY (BT). liT is a payroll tax seL-vice company that calculated various local, state and federal payroll tax liabilities and made payment to the various governments for clients for a small fee and temporary short term use of the tax deposits (float)b HT grossed over a $3 bi:"li8~ dclla:t"s in ~ca;'l' payments in 1990 .. It has been alleged ttat liT gjfiCerS since being purchased by MAXPHARl'lA (o1tmed by in 1988 have been using the clients -tax deposi"l:.s in"t.o liT for person.al gain and

did not ma]ce 'che appropriate ta;( paymen'cs as stipulated in contracts between HT and HT's clients. As of March of 1991 HT has been :forced into involun'cary ban]cruptcy by the clients of HT and a wire/mail fraud investigation is on going by this office~

I:,,: .", I was fired as comptroller from liT in February of 1991 :'for an alleged cocaine habit. I ::"Jd1, ,:' I is currently seeking to collect a reward from the Internal ' Revenue Se,rvice (IRS) for any tax losses that were prevented. EP .1.0 lllis point the ~~l gov.,grnment has E9-t re,?ognized ~y , , .!:illf losses ~ t..o the non-pavmej1t ..ELHT of HT's cllent taxes.' The unpaid tax liabilities are being applied to the taxpayers themselves HT was a agent for their clients and the ultimate responsibilities for unpaid taxes is believed to fall upon HT clients. 0

Collected through this division's investigation of enclosed for your examination is to the Dallas County court dated 2/16/89 to apply for a temporary restraining order, ex parte, permanent injunction and imposition of constructive trust of all the assets of MAXPHARMA, INC. (MP) and/or HAMILTON TAFT COMPANY (HT). In this petition ARMSTRONG JR. testifies to the parties involved with MP up until February 1989 and he testifies in detail to the various ways whichl I =:J it has been alleged, controlled NAT~ONAL BANK OF WASHINGTON) "loot" the assets of HT. 1~AFT COMPlLWY and Afu~STRONG, JR.'s petition

HAMILTON

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lI.RMSTRONG, JR. took over ownership control of HT in March of 1989 through a settlement of the above court case withl ==:J lI,RMSTRONG, SR., chairman of nO'" defunct PREMIER BANK in Texas, was convicted of money laundering in 1988.

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The appointed trustee of HT that is currently presiding oVer HT today during this bankrup"ccyhas stated that

there is a $85 Million dollar shortfall of taxes due that canno't be paid by HT (client deposi'cs were expended in some other way). Of this $85 million, $15.9 million " ... was transferred ou'e of Hamilton Taft during the Maxphanna era before Armstrong acquired Hamilton Taft on March 29, 1989", ARMSTRONG' JR. has channeled most of the missing $69.1 million dollars through a myriad of shell companies under his control in Dallas, Texas~ The following is a list of those companies in approximate chronological order;

DRESDNER ENTERPRISES, CHASE DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION, CAL-PACIFIC ~~NAGEMENT CORP, SUISSE TEXAS, INC., THE REMINGTON COMPANIES, INC., CCA HOLDINGS, INC., IU,IGHTSBRIDGE COMPANIES, INC., WINTHROP REALTY COMAPNY, DRESDNER PETROLEUM INC., DEI INC, and PARKER AUTOMOTIVE INC. (LA) •

The trustee also stated that he has found records that indicate $3 million dollars of unsecured personal loans '1:0~;,j;l, I in 1988 (during MAXPHARMA ownership). Also the trustee has stated that $6~1 million dollars transferred to '0',.; 0 Iduring the ARMSTRONG era at HT. San Francisco finds it peculiar that ARJ"1STRONG would grant loans tole,' c' lafter stating in sworn testimony in his statement to the court that I ] had " ... breach of his duty to pay the promissory note when due forms a basis of the causes of the action asserted against him in this lawsuit". San Francisco believes that I ~inancedl purchase of ~~XPHARMA in December of 1987.

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There is ~ b~ Fraud invesTjgatiqn nnw sti~ in the early stages concernlngl-~ J San Francisco has yet to verify the allegations in the enclosed article thatl Ihad defaulted on three loans from BCCI. If this office can be of any further assistance or any more detail desired by VMFO on these twosrases rs they may nA)""t-aj~ to BCCI contact SA L ----1 or SAL ..-J

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