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report on programme manipulation - Independent Inquiry Committee

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INDEPENDENT INQUIRY COMMITTEE INTO THE UNITED NATIONS OIL-FOR-FOOD PROGRAMME<br />

REPORT ON PROGRAMME MANIPULATION<br />

CHAPTER TWO<br />

OIL TRANSACTIONS AND ILLICIT PAYMENTS<br />

Windmill and Ibex S&E and the sole signatory to Windmill’s bank accounts at Banque Audi and<br />

also at Banque Saradar, both used for payments to SOMO. 372<br />

2. The August 27, 2001 Essex Top-Off Load<br />

On August 27, 2001, the Essex lifted 1.8 milli<strong>on</strong> barrels under Ibex c<strong>on</strong>tract M/10/08, again<br />

through a Trafigura-financed letter of credit, which was again topped-off with over 200,000<br />

barrels of smuggled oil. Trafigura sold approximately <strong>on</strong>e milli<strong>on</strong> barrels of oil from the<br />

resulting cargo each to Koch Petroleum and Petromar, S.A., an affiliate of Petroleos de<br />

Venezuela. Captain Chiladakis’s revelati<strong>on</strong>s prevented the sales from being completed, however.<br />

On October 24, 2001, the Essex arrived at Curaçao and was prevented from off-loading the cargo<br />

for Koch Petroleum by authorities until the legality of the cargo was rec<strong>on</strong>ciled. 373<br />

In order to purchase the top-off cargo <strong>on</strong> this sec<strong>on</strong>d Essex trip, Trafigura again opened a standby<br />

letter of credit <strong>on</strong> behalf of Roundhead. To cancel the letter of credit, Trafigura transferred<br />

payment of €6.4 milli<strong>on</strong> to Ibex S&E’s Crédit Agricole Indosuez bank account <strong>on</strong> September 25,<br />

2001. Two days later, Ibex S&E wired €5.3 milli<strong>on</strong> to Windmill’s Banque Saradar account in<br />

Beirut. On October 5, 2001, Windmill executed a wire transfer of €5.2 milli<strong>on</strong> to a SOMO bank<br />

account at Fransabank in Beirut. 374<br />

3. Surcharge Payments to SOMO<br />

Surcharge payments were also made to the Government of Iraq in c<strong>on</strong>necti<strong>on</strong> with each of the<br />

two United Nati<strong>on</strong>s-approved oil cargoes lifted by the Essex—with financing from Trafigura—<br />

under Ibex’s c<strong>on</strong>tracts M/09/81 and M/10/08. On June 15, 2001, Trafigura wired two payments<br />

to Ibex S&E’s Banque Audi account in the amounts of €637,336 and €81,242. On June 18, 2001,<br />

Ibex S&E wired €718,590 to the Windmill account at Banque Audi. The next day, Windmill<br />

wired €637,348 to SOMO’s Fransabank account. SOMO records reflect this payment as<br />

satisfying the surcharges imposed <strong>on</strong> the Trafigura-financed lift under M/09/81. On October 2,<br />

2001, Windmill received a wire transfer of €667,978 into its Banque Saradar account from Ibex<br />

372 Jean-Paul Cayre interview (Dec. 1, 2004); Banque Audi account opening records for Windmill account<br />

no. 595136 (Apr. 3, 2001); Banque Saradar record, Windmill account, account opening records (Aug. 2,<br />

2001).<br />

373 SOMO sales c<strong>on</strong>tract, no. M/10/08 (July 11, 2001) (c<strong>on</strong>tracting with Ibex); <strong>Committee</strong> oil financier<br />

table, c<strong>on</strong>tract no. M/10/08; SOMO bill of lading, bbl/3161 (Aug. 27, 2001); Beverly Rudy letter to Ben<strong>on</strong><br />

Sevan (Nov. 2, 2001).<br />

374 Beverly Rudy letter to Ben<strong>on</strong> Sevan (Nov. 2, 2001); Crédit Agricole Indosuez record, Ibex S&E<br />

account, payment order no. 16050 (Sept. 25, 2001); Crédit Agricole Indosuez record, Ibex S&E account,<br />

payment order from Ibex S&E to Windmill at Banque Audi (Sept. 27, 2001); Banque Audi record,<br />

Windmill account, statement (June 30 to Oct. 31, 2001); Jean-Paul Cayre Affidavit, para. 27<br />

(acknowledging that up<strong>on</strong> receiving payment for the top-off cargo, Ibex S&E in turn paid SOMO for the<br />

oil).<br />

REPORT ON PROGRAMME MANIPULATION–OCTOBER 27, 2005 PAGE 184 OF 623

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