HOUSTON, (Reuters) – Jailed financier Allen Stanford, accused of running a massive Ponzi scheme, filed a $7.2 billion lawsuit accusing federal prosecutors and regulators of depriving him of his constitutional rights.
The government agents “undertook illegal tactics” to prosecute Stanford and “engaged in unfair, abusive law enforcement methods and tactics” that left him broke and unable to properly defend himself, according to the lawsuit filed in federal court in Houston late on Wednesday.
The lawsuit seeking return of his assets comes two years after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filed civil charges against the former jet-setting Texas financier.
Stanford is accused of running a $7 billion Ponzi scheme centered on fraudulent certificates of deposit issued by Stanford International Bank in Antigua. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges in a 21-count indictment.
