Fugitive CEO Kobi Alexander granted bail by Namibian court
The former CEO of Comverse is required to stay within the district of the Namibia capital pending his hearing.
By Yossi Melman The Associated PressA Namibian court on Tuesday granted bail to Fugitive businessman Jacob "Kobi" Alexander, accused in the United States of financial transgressions .
Alexander, the former chief executive of voicemail-software maker Comverse Technology Inc., was arrested on September 26 in the Namibian capital Windhoek at the request of the FBI after at two-month manhunt.
Alexander's lawyer, Richard Metcalfe, said Alexander was granted bail of about $1.3 million on condition that he hands in his passport. He is not allowed to leave the district of Windhoek and has to report to an Interpol inspector twice a week, on every Monday and Friday.
"We are extremely pleased," Metcalfe said.
The decision was a blow to the Namibian government, which had opposed bail on the request of the U.S., arguing Alexander could flee the country before a U.S. extradition request reached Namibian authorities.
Namibia's State Prosecutor Olivia Imalwa, who has received the report on the bail verdict, will now have to decide whether to appeal the court's decision.
"Magistrate Uatjo Uanivi found that the evidence presented for denying him bail were not convincing at all," Metcalfe said, adding that, "There was no reason to believe he would not be willing to stay in Namibia pending extradition."
The U.S. has 30 days to lodge an extradition request from the date of Alexander's arrest. Only then will a formal hearing be held. U.S. Attorney Roslynn Mauskopf said last week she would seek Alexander's swift extradition to face charges in federal court in Brooklyn.
Alexander only briefly referred to "the highly technical charges" against him during the first day of his bail hearing Monday and said he intends to plead not guilty.
In his affidavit filed with the court, Alexander, 54, an Israeli citizen, said he had been living in Namibia with his wife and three children since July and had transferred almost $16 million from Israel to Namibian commercial banks.
"While in Namibia I have used my own name openly and publicly in all my encounters and ventures with government officials and private individuals alike," Alexander said.
"I entered Namibia openly and lawfully, and I have not in any manner tried to hide my whereabouts from anyone," he added.
Alexander, who has a two-year permit to live and work in Namibia, purchased a $500,000 house on the Windhoek Country Club Estate. His children attend the city's international school.
According to his statement he has invested a further $1.5 million in various business ventures in Namibia with local partners. He has purchased a number of properties and plans various low-cost housing developments.
Authorities began hunting for Alexander in late July shortly before a criminal complaint was unsealed accusing him and two other former top executives of fraud.
Before he disappeared, Alexander allegedly transferred $57 million to Israel.
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Kobi Alexander, the former CEO of leading voicemail software maker Comverse Technology Inc. (AP) |
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I am Namibian and from what I read is his and development plans more than welcome. I dont like what he might have done wrong but I am interested to see in what he proclaims to do right for Namibia. He has publicly registered Alexander Enterprises and promises alot of Development projects, what a good use for stolen money, he is willing to feed hungry people atleast.
If he is not guilty then he should take a million or 2 and go to America with his lawyers! But then again corruption runs in Israeli blood. look at Israels leaders and down the ladder and you will find corruption and harrasment cases against them. Many people I know are still paying debts due to thier partners running away and leaving them with more than just the bills! STAY CLEAR FROM AN ISRAELI BUSSINESS PARTNER! MR ALEXANDER-BE A MAN AND PROVE US WRONG! DONT HIDE AWAY LIKE YOUR OTHER BROTHERS!!!!!!!!!!!
Are not all persons assumed to be NOT guilty until proven guilty in a court of law. I am not defending Alexander but all I am saying is lets hear all the evidence and then we can decide whether he should be locked up and the keys thrown away.
"The worse part about people like him is that they don?t believe they did anything wrong and believe they were singled out and harassed." Sounds like most Israeli's when it comes to the conflict with the Pals (yes, the Pals are the same as well).
Someone as well connected, wealthy, smart and powerful as Alexander will do anything in his power to evade the FBI and avoid his fate of spending the rest of his life in an 8 x 10 cell. The tools that US 3 letter agencies will use to track his email and telephone calls are made by the companies he created and he will use counter technology, available only to insiders in order to thwart their efforts. The worse part about people like him is that they don?t believe they did anything wrong and believe they were singled out and harassed.
10 million dollars is nothing to Kobi Alexander. He will skip bail and Israeli Intelligence will help him return to Israel where he will not be extradited. The 10 million dollars is just a bribe to Namibian justice system. America should have renditioned him and sent him to an East European state to be routinely tortured until he reveals hiding places of all money he stole and after recovery of money, lock him away forever. Wait and see.