Colello
Found Guilty
and Jailed for
Defrauding
Texas Oil Co
Italian
Passport &
Key West Cited
by
Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Book
Substack
SDNY COURTHOUSE,
May 26 – Michael
Colello is on
trial, charged
with a scheme
to defraud a
Texas oil and
gas company
out of nearly
$2 million.
On May 22,
2023, U.S.
District Court
for the
Southern
District of
New York Judge
Jed S. Rakoff
began
Colello's
trial. Inner
City Press was
there.
On the witness
stand was Mr.
Smith, who had
wired money at
Colello's
directly.
The
Assistant US
Attorney
sought to
introduce an
email with a
hyperlink.
Colello's
lawyer
objected,
saying the
hyperlink or
its underlying
document was
in
evidence.
Judge
Rakoff called
for a sidebar,
without white
noise. (The
document, when
admitted and
published, was
not put on the
TV monitor
facing the
gallery).
Smith
testified that
now the link
does not work,
but that it
had in 2015.
On
May 23 Smith
was still on
the stand,
with the jury
out of the
room, when
counsel argued
about the
admissibility
of a document
about the SEC
for cross
examining
Smith. The
AUSA suggested
that Smith
leave the
courtroom; he
did, to the
witness room.
After a
recounting of
the argument
that a SEC
filing
couldn't be
made due to
the absence of
an auditor,
the document
was excluded,
at least for
the moment.
On
May 25, a
government
paralegal
witness
introduced and
was
cross-examined
about a number
of documents,
including one
claiming that
Colello was
the COO of
Barclays. Then
the US put on
Verdun Edgtton
of Barclays,
who testified
that Colello
was never the
COO of
Barclays, to
his knowledge.
Colello's
lawyer put in
proposed jury
amendments,
including that
they be told
that
"Colello's
alleged use of
the name 'Stan
Greeme' or
'Mike Greene'
is not a
conspiracy."
On
May 26, Inner
City Press was
in the
courtroom for
the verdict -
and remand.
Thread:
OK
- now at jury
verdict in US
v Colello...
Verdict:
Guilty on both
counts
AUSA:
We request
remand to
jail.
Defendant has
been shown to
have used
multiple
aliases since
the 1990s. He
was convicted
in Los
Angeles. He
tried to flee
the US from
the Florida
Keys by sea
plane. [US
Marshals are
here in back
of the
courtroom]
AUSA:
You can live a
fine life in
the Malay
Peninsula on
$100,000. He
previously
used a fake
Hungarian
passport, then
said, I'm not
going back to
jail.
Defense:
Colello
cooperated
with the US in
LA and put a
lawyer there
in jail. He
lives in
Westchester
County
AUSA:
His children
told the FBI
they were to
meet up with
him in the
Netherlands
Antilles. He
and his wife
have copies of
Italian
passports.
We'll be
asking for at
least six
years.
Judge
Rakoff: Based
on the
statute, I
order you
remanded to
jail. US
Marshals move
forward
The
case is US v.
Colello,
20-cr-613
(Rakoff)
***
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