- 7 -
Gilbert's attorney, Stephen Fainsbert (Fainsbert), performed many
of the legal services necessary to create and operate these
entities.6
During early 1984, petitioner participated in several
meetings that monitored the card club's financing and
construction. He also used Forman's7 services and those of an
attorney, Emerson Allsworth8 (Allsworth), to oversee his and
Ben's financial interests. Both Allsworth and Forman, while not
initially involved in the actual money laundering, became
increasingly aware of the nature of the activities underlying the
card club's financing and Ben's actual ownership role.
6Petitioner, as discussed infra pp. 13-14, would later
testify at the criminal trial of Michael Gilbert and Fainsbert as
a Government witness. Many of the findings for this background
story of petitioner's involvement in Ben's money laundering
activities are drawn from petitioner's testimony at this trial in
1993 and his similar testimony at the civil forfeiture trial
adjunct to his own criminal trial in 1991. Transcripts of
petitioner's testimony from those trials were made part of the
record in the trial of the cases at hand.
7In addition to signing petitioner's 1985 Form 1040 as
return preparer, Forman performed services for Ben's various
criminal enterprises, not the least of which was evaluating the
investment decisions concerning the card club, in which Ben and
his associates, with petitioner's assistance, invested $12
million.
8Allsworth, petitioner's longtime friend, served as attorney
to Ben's criminal enterprises, for which he was well paid from
petitioners' Safra Bank account (see infra pp. 16-17), especially
in 1986. Allsworth was listed as President of Hallandale
Residential Properties, Inc., the entity created to hold legal
title to the house that served as Ben's personal residence.
Allsworth also was listed as the registered agent for the various
entities associated with the racing boat enterprise described
infra.
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