Author: Badalian Vardan

FRESNO ARMENIANS TO GET COMPENSATION IN FRAUD CASE

PanARMENIAN.Net
August 6, 2011 – 14:02 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – Two senior officers of a defunct northwest Fresno
business must pay $46.5 million to more than 1,200 victims of an
alleged Ponzi scheme, a jury ruled Friday in Fresno County Superior
Court.

But the victims – many of them from Fresno’s Armenian-American
community – won’t ever get full restitution. The defendants likely
don’t have that much cash or could be hiding their assets, a lawyer
for the victims said.

“They will get something back,” attorney Ara Jabagchourian said. “But
it will be pennies on the dollar.”

Jurors deliberated two days before finding Dan Ramirez, president of
HL Leasing Inc., and Andy Fernandez, the company’s chief financial
officer, liable.

The jury verdict in the class-action suit came three days after Judge
Donald Black found HL Leasing Inc., Heritage Pacific Leasing and Air
Fred LLC also liable for defrauding the victims.

The three companies were created by John W. Otto, the alleged
mastermind of the Ponzi scheme, but he committed suicide in 2009.

The jury found Ramirez liable under the theory of fraudulent
concealment and aiding and abetting the fraud. Fernandez also aided
and abetted in the fraud, the panel concluded.

John Otto founded HL Leasing at Shaw and Valentine avenues in 2001.

Over the years, he and his employees fraudulently enticed investors
to lend HL Leasing money by telling them that he was buying American
Express lease agreements at a discount. In return, the investors
would get monthly payments on their loans.

Jabagchourian and co-counsel Donald Fischbach said Ramirez used
longtime investors to vouch for the company’s success to prospective
clients. Ramirez also falsely told the prospects that the company
was registered with the California Department of Corporations.

Many of the Fresno victims are members of St. Paul’s Armenian Church
and Holy Trinity Armenian Apostolic Church. Once the churchgoers
learned that fellow parishioners were making money, “it spread by
word of mouth,” Jabagchourian said, Fresnobee reported.

NAGORNYY KARABAKH CONFLICT: MYTHS AND REALITY
by David Stepanyan

arminfo
Friday, August 5, 20:19

The most difficult task of the intermediaries in the matter of
reaching peaceful settlement of the old Karabakh conflict, though
it is strange, is not how to gain from the presidents of Armenia and
Azerbaijan signing of the raw document, but how to fulfill it later.

However, just as a result of its fulfillment, the regular escalation
of violence in the region will become possible.

It is no secret, that in the basic principles for the conflict
settlement there are absolutely no realistic schemes how to reach
fully-fledged peace. That’s why, today the societies of both states
have to strictly differentiate myths, which permanently appear around
the settlement process, from reality…

The reality is that the new proposals of the Russian president on
taking the settlement process out deadlock appeared immediately
after the failure of the Kazan meeting of the three presidents. The
information was disseminated in Armenia and Azerbaijan about the
next trilateral meeting of the presidents, which the Kremlin has been
preparing around Mevedev’s new ideas. It has become clear, that there
is no need to wait for rapprochement of positions of the parties to
the conflict based on the so-called Madrid principles.

However, against such a background, the parties to the conflict
and the external forces connected with it in this or that way, have
started inventing new myths about the receipt which will change the
situation around Nagornyy Karabakh and destroy the status-quo, which
the Azerbaijani party dreams of from the talks most of all.

Incidentally, the lovers of the modern myths are not confused for
the fact that the next meeting of the presidents did not take place,
as well as for the fact that the history of settlement has not yet
given reason for such conclusions. In fact, such mythologization of
the conflict supported and disseminated by the parties and co-sponsors
of the process, is becoming a serious factor which contradicts its
settlement. In this context, incidentally just the Kazan failure
has become the stimulus for animation of discussion about possible
settlement of the conflict through a new war.

Thus, official Baku has again started rattling the saboteur and
threatening Yerevan and Stepanakert with a stick of new war, at the
same time keeping for the intermediaries a hard carrot in the form of
“the widest autonomy”. For its part, the leadership of Armenia again
is putting stress on the transitional status and the necessity of
giving an independent status to Nagornyy Karabakh, mentioned in the
basic principles for the Karabakh settlement.

So there was no real pre-condition, except mythology and groundless
optimism for signing of the real agreement on settlement of the
conflict, either in Kazan or before it. But who is blamed for not
happening of the eagerly expected “breakthrough”? The Americans and
Europeans cast responsibility for the blame on president Medvedev and
Russian diplomacy, blaming them for the fact that they do not want
“to lose their positions in the South Caucasus”. As for the Russians,
they again suspected that the Americans want “to bank fires” by
Russia’s hands.

As a result, in the person of the Karabakh conflict we have come across
just a part of the big geo-political game of the world superpowers, in
which all of them are guided only by the national interests. Actually,
all last processes demonstrated invalidity of the thesis “superpowers
resolve everything and every time”. The positions and interests of
the ruling elites of Armenia and Azerbaijan have always been the
key stumbling stone on the way of mutual compromises in settlement,
which the superpowers want to see in their own interests. By word
of mouth president of Armenia always voices readiness to “mutual
compromises”. As for the president of Azerbaijan, he cannot allow
himself even to express readiness to them, he gains his political
vitality as he has an uncompromising stance.

Both presidents undergo harsh pressing from inside as well as outside,
which in fact cannot make Baku recognize independence of the NKR,
and Yerevan – to gift an independent Karabakh to Azerbaijan. For
this reason, the intermediaries have nothing else to do than to try
to coordinate absolutely contradictory interests of the parties on
the basis of the basic principles and naively hope to turn them into
a pre-condition for final agreement.

Certainly, presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan can sign “the
principles”. It is more difficult to try bring them to life, as in that
case Aliyev will be forced, for instance, to “correct” the Constitution
of Azerbaijan and integrate in it the point about autonomies in favor
of Karabakh, and give these autonomies to Lezgins, Avars, Tats and
other national minorities. After that, the head of Azerbaijan will be
forces to gather his citizens “suffered of the Armenian aggression” and
spread in all over the world and force them to return to the so-called
occupied territories of Azerbaijan”, so that then de-jure to recognize
independence of Nagornyy Karabakh which is de-facto independent.

For his part, Serzh Sargsyan having got no clear guarantee of security
of the Karabakh people, will be force to trust in the co-chairs and
especially Aliyev, and make the Karabakh army leave the territories
which are the only protection of the people of Karabakh. It is not
hard to imagine what will happen in Yerevan, Stepanakert and Baku
after that. But the most important is that the presidents themselves
understand it very well, as they really differ mythology from reality.

HRAPARAK: TAMAR POGHOSYAN IS JOBLESS

Tert.am
06.08.11

In an interview with Tamar Poghosyan, the former Director of “One
nation – one culture” foundation, the paper asked her about her plans
to which Poghosyan responded that she is not doing anything now.

“I am not doing anything now. I am having rest. I will later plan
my future activities. I don’t like making hasty decisions. To make
a new decision is a rather serious issue, and everything should be
done with a cold judgment,” she said.

AZERBAIJANI EXPERT: “TURKISH MILITARY PRESENCE IN AZERBAIJAN A REAL POSSIBILITY”

13:01, August 5, 2011

The following is an interview with Jasur Sumerenli, who heads the
“Doctrine” Journalists’ Military Research Center, an Azerbaijani NGO.

Does Azerbaijan have a military doctrine? What is its significance?

Such a doctrine was passed by the Azerbaijani parliament in 2010.

Contrary to the policy adopted by the legislature in 2006, the current
one is more balanced but isn’t well defined strategically.

It was after the Russian-Georgian war in 2008 that the parliament
decided it was time to reform the policy; to make it more balanced
and diversified.

The former strategic aim of integration into European and Euro-Atlantic
structures and the desire to cooperate with NATO was left somewhat
unclear in the new doctrine.

Who are Azerbaijan’s military and strategic partners and to what
extent can Azerbaijan rely on their assistance?

Azerbaijan’s real partner is Turkey. But Azerbaijan has no
military/strategic cooperation document with Ankara.

In August 2010, the presidents of the two nations signed an agreement
on strategic cooperation and mutual assistance. The agreement includes
strategic and political issues and security matters.

Azerbaijan views its security guarantor in Euro-Atlantic integration
and cooperation with Turkey.

According to the military doctrine, foreign forces can be based on
Azerbaijani territory. In this regard, the possibility of a Turkish
presence in Azerbaijan, especially in Nakhijevan, is quite real.

If we take into account the presence of Russian troops in Armenia,
then a Turkish military presence in Azerbaijan can also be viewed
as logical.

Regarding the question of relying on Turkey when it counts, most
experts would agree that this agreement doesn’t portend Turkish
military assistance.

But Turkey continues to support Baku in the Karabakh conflict
settlement process.

The agreement also raises the issue of Turkey’s responsibility in
defending the territorial integrity of all of Azerbaijan.

Previously, according to the Treaty of Kars, Ankara was responsible
for the security of the Nakhijevan Autonomous Region only.

What international organizations and according to what agreements is
monitoring of Azerbaijan’s military build-up and military operations
taking place?

Azerbaijan’s cooperative documents with NATO are essentially intended
to establish mechanisms for democratic monitoring of the military.

Presently, the Partnership Action Plan on Defence Institution Building
(PAP-DIB) is being carried out.

It aims to reinforce efforts by Partner countries to reform and
restructure their defence institutions to meet domestic needs as well
as international commitments.

The project essentially states that it is vital for democratic
institutions to be established in the defense sector.

We must admit that right now there is no real monitoring of the
Azerbaijani military by any international body.

LA TURQUIE ABAISSE SON TAUX DIRECTEUR A 5,75%
Ara

armenews.com
vendredi 5 aout 2011

ISTANBUL (AFP) – La Banque centrale a abaisse jeudi de 0,5 point son
taux directeur et releve de 1,5 point son taux d’emprunt au jour le
jour pour faire face aux difficultes de l’economie mondiale et eviter
une eventuelle stagnation en Turquie.

Le comite de la politique monetaire de la Banque centrale a annonce
dans un communique diffuse sur son site internet avoir abaisse son
taux directeur, le taux d’emprunt a une semaine, de 6,25% a 5,75%.

“Le comite a opte pour une baisse mesuree du taux directeur dans le
but de faire baisser le risque de stagnation de l’activite economique
domestique cree par les problèmes croissants de l’economie mondiale”,
affirme le document. La Banque centrale a dans le meme temps releve
son taux d’emprunt au jour le jour de 1,5 point, a 5%, afin de
“reduire la volatilite” face aux doutes sur la croissance mondiale.

“Les inquietudes relatives au problème de la dette publique de
certains pays europeens et la croissance mondiale ont gagne en force
(…). Dans ce contexte, le comite a decide de retrecir le corridor du
taux d’interet en augmentant de manière importante le taux d’emprunt
au jour le jour pour reduire la volatilite”, indique le communique.

La decision de la Banque centrale intervient dans un contexte de
forte croissance economique en Turquie.

En 2009, plongee dans la recession du fait de la crise mondiale,
l’economie turque s’etait contractee de 4,8%. La croissance turque
a cependant fortement rebondi, atteignant 8,9% en 2010 et 11% au
premier trimestre 2011.

Cette croissance a creuse le deficit des comptes courants, alors que
les importations ont grimpe et que la progression des exportations
vers l’Europe s’est tassee, le deficit etant comble notamment par
des capitaux speculatifs a court terme, dits “hot money”.

news.am, Armenia
Aug 6 2011

Armenian universities must get international certification – PM

August 06, 2011 | 23:27

YEREVAN. – Prime Minister of Armenia Tigran Sargsyan met with students
of LuysFoundation Develop Armenia program on Saturday.

The PM said that in modern world knowledge is an essential resource
and building a knowledge-based society requires educational system
that would correspond to highest international criteria.

Sargsyan emphasized the necessity of acquiring international
certification for Armenian universities.

Luys scholars gather in Armenia and live for a several weeks with
small communities spread throughout the country. They design projects
that carry the wealth of the knowledge they have acquired abroad and
apply their knowledge to the reality and the needs of the local
communities.

news.am, Armenia
Aug 6 2011

Turkey is always aggressive and hostile towards Armenia – expert

August 06, 2011 | 01:04

YEREVAN. – Turkish state will always express animosity and aggression
towards Armenia and Armenians, regardless of new figures, political
scientist Ruben Mehrabyan told Armenian News-NEWS.am commenting on
change of military leadership in Turkey.

According to him, the change of military leadership closed an
important page of Turkey’s modern history.

`The generals played decisive roles for decades but their resent
struggle with Prime Minister Erdogan ended with PM victory. Arrests of
high senior militaries in Turkey became common thing, while the
General Staff cannot make any specific steps to oppose this. Turkish
history is marked by several Coup d’états but Erdogan made skillful
use of geopolitical situation and existing problems, managing to
neutralize the possibility of another coup d’état,’ said Mehrabyan.

He argues that the new commander of Turkish Armed Forces is rather a
temporary figure, who is under huge influence of Erdogan, while
holding aggressive positions towards Kurdish question.

As reported earlier General Necdet Ozel, previous head of the
paramilitary gendarmerie, was named as new Chief of General Staff of
Turkey. Former Chief of General Staff Isik Kosaner unexpectedly
resigned last week. Commanders of Turkish Navy and Air Force resigned
with him.

Fresno Bee , CA
Aug 6 2011

Fresnans found liable in Ponzi scheme suit

Victims may not collect much from a jury’s $46.5m award.

Posted at 10:25 PM on Friday, Aug. 05, 2011
By Pablo Lopez / The Fresno Bee

Two senior officers of a defunct northwest Fresno business must pay
$46.5 million to more than 1,200 victims of an alleged Ponzi scheme, a
jury ruled Friday in Fresno County Superior Court.

But the victims – many of them from Fresno’s Armenian-American
community – won’t ever get full restitution. The defendants likely
don’t have that much cash or could be hiding their assets, a lawyer
for the victims said.

“They will get something back,” attorney Ara Jabagchourian said. “But
it will be pennies on the dollar.”

Jurors deliberated two days before finding Dan Ramirez, president of
HL Leasing Inc., and Andy Fernandez, the company’s chief financial
officer, liable.

The jury verdict in the class-action suit came three days after Judge
Donald Black found HL Leasing Inc., Heritage Pacific Leasing and Air
Fred LLC also liable for defrauding the victims.

The three companies were created by John W. Otto, the alleged
mastermind of the Ponzi scheme, but he committed suicide in 2009,
leaving his wife, Kathleen, and his two top employees to defend
themselves during a three-week trial.

The jury found Ramirez liable under the theory of fraudulent
concealment and aiding and abetting the fraud. Fernandez also aided
and abetted in the fraud, the panel concluded.

According to Jabagchourian, jurors said Kathleen Otto also knew about
the Ponzi scheme and participated in it. But the panel found she was
not liable for damages because her actions didn’t cause financial harm
to the victims, he said.

John Otto founded HL Leasing at Shaw and Valentine avenues in 2001.
Over the years, he and his employees fraudulently enticed investors to
lend HL Leasing money by telling them that he was buying American
Express lease agreements at a discount, Jabagchourian told jurors.

In return, the investors would get monthly payments on their loans, he said.

Jabagchourian and co-counsel Donald Fischbach said Ramirez used
longtime investors to vouch for the company’s success to prospective
clients. Ramirez also falsely told the prospects that the company was
registered with the California Department of Corporations, they said.

Many of the Fresno victims are members of St. Paul’s Armenian Church
and Holy Trinity Armenian Apostolic Church. Once the churchgoers
learned that fellow parishioners were making money, “it spread by word
of mouth,” Jabagchourian said.

During the trial, Jabagchourian showed the jury loan agreements that
John Otto had signed with investors and a document that showed each
loan was protected by collateral from American Express leases. But
there were no legitimate lease agreements between HL Leasing and
American Express, and therefore no collateral protection, he said.

The Fresno office closed and the alleged Ponzi scheme ended when Otto
shot himself in the head on May 11, 2009, in the parking lot of the
Palm Desert Visitors Center – just a few miles from his $2 million
home.

In arguing the case, Jabagchourian contended Ramirez, Fernandez and
Kathleen Otto knew about the scheme and committed fraud, but kept it
quiet to finance their lavish lifestyles.

Ramirez, for example, made nearly $5 million between 2004 and 2008,
Jabagchourian told the jury. Fernandez made as much as $126,000 per
year plus bonuses as chief financial officer, he said.

Kathleen Otto amassed a fortune, court records show. She owns
expensive cars, more than $1.2 million in jewelry, the $2 million home
in Palm Desert and a membership to an exclusive country club.

Attorneys for Ramirez and Fernandez, however, said the two didn’t know
about the scheme, but once they found out, they reported it to the
FBI.

The FBI said Friday it still is investigating the alleged Ponzi scheme.

Jabagchourian said the Ponzi scheme ruined the lives of many people.
“Many of them lost their life savings,” he said.

He said Kathleen Otto still can be held liable under the theory she
was a shareholder of the three companies that defrauded the victims. A
hearing on that issue is scheduled for September.

“We hope this verdict against the corporations and the jury verdict
against the individuals will be the first step in helping those who
lost everything begin to recover what was lost,” Jabagchourian said in
a news release.

news.az, Azerbaijan
Aug 6 2011

‘Armenia to pay for its occupation policy’
Sat 06 August 2011 07:30 GMT | 3:30 Local Time

News.Az interviews Kamer Kasim, professor and Deputy Director of
Turkey-based International Organization for Strategic Studies.
Azerbaijan and Turkey are expected to sign intergovernmental agreement
on transit of natural gas this September. What significance this
agreement will carry for the region?

The intergovernmental agreement between Azerbaijan and Turkey,
designed for the transit of Azerbaijani gas to Europe, will link the
two countries fully in terms of energy. The rational solution for
Azerbaijan, which has rich energy reserves, but that does not have
access to world markets via the sea, is the territories of friendly
states that are the most reliable route for export of its natural
resources. Relations between Azerbaijan and Turkey, marked by the
formula of “One nation – two states”, will become more interconnected
and strong after gas transit agreement is signed between them.

Turkey and Azerbaijan built such interrelated and strong relations
even while implementing Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline project.
These energy pipelines will even more strengthen strategic ties
between the two countries. At the same time, Azerbaijan’s energy
exports to Europe through Turkey will foster relations between
Azerbaijan and Europe even more. This may change the attitude and
position of some European states to occupation of Azerbaijani lands.

What role of Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway to be launched in 2012 will
play in development of the region?

Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway will play a significant role in increasing
volume of trade between countries in the region. At the same time,
this railroad will connect Azerbaijan and Georgia to Europe. Without a
doubt, this project will pave the way for economic integration between
Turkey and Azerbaijan.

Armenia remains on the sidelines of the regional projects. What damage
will this country suffer due to its occupation policy?

Armenia, who remains on the sidelines of these regional projects, will
pay for its occupation policies. The Armenian lobby in the United
States did much to hamper construction of Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railroad.

Construction of this railway will revive Silk Way that will link the
region with the Central Asia. Armenia remains outside energy and
transportation routes laid in the region increasingly leading to the
isolation of this country. Thus, all these factors force Armenia to
surrender its sovereignty to Russia at an alarming level. The more
Azerbaijan, Turkey and Georgia are developed and integrated into the
region, the more Armenia remains outside of these processes.

What benefits Armenia may get if it renounces its traditional policies?

Once Armenia chooses policy distinctive from its approach to Nagorno
Karabakh issue, it will open her way to the process of rapprochement
with the West. There can be no talk of peace and stability in the
Caucasus, as long as the lands of Azerbaijan are still occupied. A
situation of “frozen conflict” can change at any time and lead to a
resumption of hostilities. Countries wishing to obtain economic
benefit from integration of the Caucasus to Europe need to make
efforts to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh problem.

Lala B.
News.Az

Iran, Russia likely to discuss Tehran’s nuclear issue

20:46 – 02.08.11

Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said Tuesday that
Iran and Russia will possibly discuss Iran’s nuclear issue in the
upcoming visit of a senior Russian official to Tehran, the local
satellite Press TV reported.

In the upcoming visit to Tehran by Nikolai Patrushev, Secretary of
Russian National Security Council, “Various issues including bilateral
ties and regional developments will be discussed,” Mehmanparast was
quoted as saying by the Xinhua new agency as saying.

Iran’s “peaceful” nuclear program will possibly be discussed with the
Russian official too, said the spokesman.

On Tuesday, Press TV reported that Patrushev will visit Tehran on August 15.

The Iran spokesman emphasized Tehran’s determination to pursue its
civilian nuclear activities that are “carried out based on mutual
commitments between Tehran and the International Atomic Energy Agency
(IAEA),” said the report.

In July, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov called for “phased”
approach to resolve Iran’s nuclear standoff whereby Iran would address
international concerns and the questions raised by the International
Atomic Energy Agency about its nuclear activities in a staged schedule
and in return economic sanctions imposed on Iran would be removed in a
staged manner over time.

On Tuesday, Mehmanparast said that the Islamic Republic is currently
receiving the details of Russia’s “phased” approach proposal and
Iranian officials are negotiating the plan.

Tert.am