Greece Nabs Fugitive HF Manager

Date: Thursday, September 27, 2007
Author: Hedge Fund Daily

A two-year international manhunt for a fugitive hedge fund manager ended earlier this week when Greek authorities arrested Angelo Haligiannis outside Athens, GreekNews reports. Haligainnis, a college dropout from Queens, New York and the former president of New York-based Sterling Watters Capital, is wanted by U.S. law enforcement officials. Haligiannis, 35, has been on the lam since January 2006 when he cut his ankle bracelet and fled the country. He faced up to 25 years in jail after pleading guilty to securities fraud charges associated with defrauding investors out of more than $78 million by masterminding a Ponzi scheme. In August, one of Haligiannis fraud victims spotted the hedge fund manager in the lobby of a luxury hotel in Crete and called local police. Greek authorities let him go, however, maintaining that Greek citizens cannot be extradited to the U.S. for white-collar crimes. The re-arrest on Tuesday was prompted by a fraud complaint filed by a victim in Greece. A spokeswoman for the Greek Consulate in New York told the news service that she was unaware of the new charges filed in Greece and would seek an update from the justice ministry there.