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with: "[[Business Council of Alabama]]"
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start: "2026"
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role: "listed member of the 2026 board of directors"
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fn: 17
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fn: 24
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- type: member_of
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with: "[[Tuberville for Senate]]"
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start: "2026-02-11"
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role: "member of the campaign finance committee announced the week of February 12, 2026"
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fn: 18
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fn: 25
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- type: subject_of
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with: "[[Berry v. Bailey]]"
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start: "2024-04-25"
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@ -64,23 +64,29 @@ relations:
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end: "2026-04-27"
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role: "eight itemized contributions totaling $115,000"
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fn: 6
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- type: funded
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with: "[[Mike Rogers Victory]]"
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start: 2023-10-10
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role: "$1,000 listed under William C. Bailey, occupation CEO, employer Radiance Technologies, on the committee's year-end 2023 report (image 202401299600583863)"
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fn: 23
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created: 2026-10-04
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updated: 2026-10-04
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---
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### Identity
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William C. Bailey Jr. is the chief executive officer of [[Radiance Technologies]] of [[Huntsville, Alabama]]. The company's own biography names him "William C. Bailey, Jr.", states that he joined Radiance in 2001, and gives his background as fourteen years of military service as "a B-52 aircraft maintenance technician and as a Research and Development Engineer at the National Air and Space Intelligence Center and the Phillips Laboratory, now the Air Force Research Laboratory." It lists a Bachelor of Science in electrical engineering from [[Louisiana Tech University]].[^1] The [[Alabama Secretary of State]] record for Radiance lists "William C Bailey" among the five directors entered with the corporation's restated articles on May 19, 2014.[^2] The defendant named "William C. Bailey" in the 2024 suit Berry v. Bailey is described in the pleadings as chief executive officer of Radiance and a member of its board; the identity of the defendant, the company officer and the October 2024 vice chairman of [[Radiance Ignite Technologies]] rests on the same name and office.[^3][^4]
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A William Bailey who directs the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office (a Notre Dame graduate and test pilot) is a different person.[^5] A William C. Bailey III appears in FEC records with occupations unrelated to the chief executive's; those rows are excluded from the donation figures below.[^6]
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A William Bailey who directs the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office (a Notre Dame graduate and test pilot) is a different person.[^5] A William C. Bailey III appears in [[Federal Election Commission|FEC]] records with occupations unrelated to the chief executive's; those rows are excluded from the donation figures below.[^6]
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### Air Force service and early industry career
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The company biography gives the military portion as fourteen years that began in B-52 maintenance and moved to research and development engineering at the [[National Air and Space Intelligence Center]] (NASIC) and at [[Phillips Laboratory]], now the [[Air Force Research Laboratory]].[^1] NASIC is the successor to the [[Foreign Technology Division]] at [[Wright-Patterson Air Force Base]]. A 2017 [[Business Council of Alabama]] member profile states that his career began in the [[United States Air Force]] as a "B-52 mechanic."[^7] Radiance's own December 2001 and September 2002 web pages on foreign materiel exploitation (the 2002 page lists "Hardware Reverse Engineering" and "ELINT, COMINT, FISINT, and MASINT Analysis") name Bill Bailey as the contact for the Intelligence Community support area.[^8]
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The company biography gives the military portion as fourteen years that began in B-52 maintenance and moved to research and development engineering at the [[National Air and Space Intelligence Center]] (NASIC) and at [[Phillips Laboratory]], now the [[Air Force Research Laboratory]].[^1] NASIC is the successor to the [[Foreign Technology Division]] at [[Wright-Patterson Air Force Base]]. A 2017 [[Business Council of Alabama]] member profile states that his career began in the [[United States Air Force]] as a "B-52 mechanic."[^7] Radiance's own December 2001 and September 2002 web pages on foreign materiel exploitation (the 2002 page lists "Hardware Reverse Engineering" and "[[ELINT]], COMINT, FISINT, and MASINT Analysis") name Bill Bailey as the contact for the Intelligence Community support area.[^8]
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### Radiance Technologies
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Radiance began operating on March 15, 1999 under the founders George Clark, John Dennis and Scott Dublin.[^9] On January 29, 2013 the company announced that its board had appointed Bailey president effective January 15, 2013; he had been a Radiance employee for twelve years and had moved up from senior vice president and manager of the Intelligence Systems Group. George Clark, one of the original founders, remained chairman of the board, and the company had ended 2012 with approximately $140 million in revenue.[^10] A later company biography describes Bailey as chief executive of a "$200M 100% employee-owned small business" with "core competencies in developing advanced technologies, integrating systems, performing technical intelligence, and providing engineering services to the Department of Defense."[^1]
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Radiance began operating on March 15, 1999 under the founders George Clark, John Dennis and Scott Dublin.[^9] On January 29, 2013 the company announced that its board had appointed Bailey president effective January 15, 2013; he had been a Radiance employee for twelve years and had moved up from senior vice president and manager of the Intelligence Systems Group. George Clark, one of the original founders, remained chairman of the board, and the company had ended 2012 with approximately $140 million in revenue.[^10] A later company biography describes Bailey as chief executive of a "$200M 100% employee-owned small business" with "core competencies in developing advanced technologies, integrating systems, performing technical intelligence, and providing engineering services to the [[Department of Defense]]."[^1]
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Under his tenure the company won the NOVASTAR contract from NASIC (announced August 19, 2022; a five-award indefinite delivery vehicle, with Radiance's vehicle FA860422DB008 carrying a $4,797,000,000 ceiling to August 18, 2027). Bailey said the award reflected "20 years of hard work" with "our customer, NASIC."[^11] On April 22, 2022 Radiance hired [[Travis Taylor]]; Bailey was quoted calling Taylor "an outstanding and highly qualified scientist."[^12] On May 12, 2022 the company announced [[Jay Stratton]] as "SME for Intel Strategy" and member of "the CEO's Strategy Team", noting that he had most recently been the first director of the [[UAP Task Force]].[^13]
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@ -92,7 +98,7 @@ The October 14, 2024 announcement of the joint venture of Radiance and [[Ignite
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### Louisiana ties
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Radiance operates in Shreveport and Baton Rouge. On August 25, 2025 Louisiana Economic Development announced a $370.65 million secure microchip packaging facility in Lincoln Parish with Radiance, Louisiana Tech University and the Louisiana Tech University Foundation; the state committed $20 million in matching funds to the foundation and $17 million to Louisiana Tech. Bailey said the partnership was "a win-win opportunity that will benefit Radiance, Tech, Ruston and the entire state."[^16] Bailey gave $25,000 to Conservative Louisiana on March 31, 2026 and $27,100 in four contributions to the Letlow Victory Fund (August 12, 2022 to March 19, 2026).[^6]
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Radiance operates in Shreveport and [[Baton Rouge, Louisiana|Baton Rouge]]. On August 25, 2025 Louisiana Economic Development announced a $370.65 million secure microchip packaging facility in Lincoln Parish with Radiance, Louisiana Tech University and the Louisiana Tech University Foundation; the state committed $20 million in matching funds to the foundation and $17 million to Louisiana Tech. Bailey said the partnership was "a win-win opportunity that will benefit Radiance, Tech, Ruston and the entire state."[^16] Bailey gave $25,000 to Conservative Louisiana on March 31, 2026 and $27,100 in four contributions to the Letlow Victory Fund (August 12, 2022 to March 19, 2026).[^6]
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### Berry v. Bailey
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@ -100,7 +106,39 @@ Heath Berry and four other former Radiance employees sued Bailey, the Radiance d
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The plaintiffs alleged that in early 2023 Bailey began exploring a sale of Radiance; that after offers from Axient and BlueHalo the board retained Jefferies, producing about fourteen offers narrowed to five, each "in a range of two times (2X) the ESOP's last appraised value"; that Bailey did not want a sale because he would not remain chief executive; that he fired Radiance president Tim Tinsley in the middle of due diligence; and that he told the board that "product(s) and programs" would lift the valuation when those products and programs "did not even exist." The complaint alleges the board then voted to table the sale and that a "brain-drain" of senior staff followed.[^3] These are the plaintiffs' allegations in a case dismissed without a ruling on the facts.
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The Radiance defendants moved to dismiss on September 4, 2024, calling the suit "a nuisance suit from five former Radiance Technologies, Inc. employees" who now work for competitors, and stating that Radiance had sued two of them (Radiance Technologies, Inc. v. Berry, 47-CV-2024-90092, Madison County Circuit Court; Radiance Technologies, Inc. v. Baker, 5:24-cv-00794, N.D. Ala.).[^3] On September 18, 2025 the court granted the motions to dismiss: the plaintiffs lacked standing for the direct state-law claims, ERISA preempted the remaining state-law claims, and the ERISA claims failed for non-exhaustion of the plan's administrative remedies. The court dismissed all claims without prejudice and closed the case.[^3]
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The Radiance defendants moved to dismiss on September 4, 2024, calling the suit "a nuisance suit from five former Radiance Technologies, Inc. employees" who now work for competitors, and stating that Radiance had sued two of them (Radiance Technologies, Inc. v. Berry, 47-CV-2024-900092, Madison County Circuit Court; Radiance Technologies, Inc. v. Baker, 5:24-cv-00794, N.D. Ala.).[^3] On September 18, 2025 the court granted the motions to dismiss: the plaintiffs lacked standing for the direct state-law claims, ERISA preempted the remaining state-law claims, and the ERISA claims failed for non-exhaustion of the plan's administrative remedies. The court dismissed all claims without prejudice and closed the case.[^3]
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### Berry v. Bailey: docket outline
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The suit began in the Circuit Court of [[Madison County, Alabama]] as No. 47-CV-2024-900415. The notice of removal (Doc. 1) was filed on April 25, 2024 by the board defendants "collectively with William C. Bailey," and the case proceeded in the [[United States]] District Court for the Northern District of Alabama as No. 5:24-cv-00522 before Judge [[Corey Maze]]. CourtListener classifies the case as Nature of Suit 791, Labor: E.R.I.S.A. (cause 29:1132). The plaintiffs, five former Radiance employees suing individually and derivatively on behalf of Radiance, named as defendants Bailey, the Radiance directors and the trustee of the Radiance employee stock ownership plan, Argent Trust Company, and the second amended complaint pleads two ERISA counts (VII and VIII) against all defendants; the allegations summarized below are the plaintiffs' pleadings, and all claims were dismissed without prejudice.[^17] The Radiance defendants' brief states that "this suit was originally filed by Berry after Radiance sued him in Madison County Circuit Court. The others joined later."[^18] Filings of record through the dismissal are:
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| Doc. | Date | Filing |
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|---|---|---|
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| 33 | August 21, 2024 | Second amended and restated verified complaint of [[Heath Berry]], [[Jade Baker]], Shawn Wilbert, Eric Briggs and Daniel Anderson (38 pages) |
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| 42 | September 4, 2024 | Radiance defendants' motion to dismiss and brief (33 pages) |
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| 42-1 | September 4, 2024 | Eleven exhibits (204 pages): Exhibit 1, Radiance's amended complaint against Berry; Exhibit 2, Radiance's complaint against Baker; Exhibits 3, 6 and 7, LinkedIn biographies; Exhibit 4, the Alabama case action summary in the Berry case; Exhibit 5, the docket of the Baker case; Exhibits 8 to 10, the [[Employee Stock Ownership Plan]], its summary plan description and the Trust Agreement; Exhibit 11, Baker's answer |
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| 43, 43-1 to 43-3 | September 4, 2024 | Argent Trust Company and affiliated defendants' motion to dismiss and Exhibits A (the ESOP, 77 pages), B (the Trust Agreement, 22 pages) and C (Form 5500, 32 pages) |
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| 48 | October 7, 2024 | Plaintiffs' consolidated response to the two motions (33 pages) |
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| 49 | October 7, 2024 | Plaintiffs' motion to strike the exhibits |
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| 53 | October 8, 2024 | unopposed motion of Argent Trust Company, Argent Financial Group and Stephen Martin for an extension of time to reply |
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| 55, 56, 57, 57-1 | October 21, 2024 | Radiance defendants' reply (13 pages); Radiance defendants' response to the motion to strike (11 pages); Argent defendants' reply (16 pages) with Exhibit D (Form 5500, 33 pages) |
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| 58 | October 22, 2024 | Argent defendants' opposition to the motion to strike |
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| 59 | October 29, 2024 | Plaintiffs' consolidated reply on the motion to strike |
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| 67 | not stated in the opinion | Radiance defendants' motion to stay discovery pending the motions to dismiss |
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| 68 | September 18, 2025 | Memorandum opinion (18 pages) |
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| 69 | September 18, 2025 | Separate order of dismissal without prejudice |
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The CourtListener docket, last updated September 14, 2026, lists no entry after September 18, 2025 and no notice of appeal.[^17][^19]
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### Berry v. Bailey: further allegations of the second amended complaint
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The second amended complaint alleges in paragraph 13 that "at Bailey's direction and with the (at least tacit) approval of the BOD, Radiance has repeatedly brought lawsuits against Berry and other former Radiance employees," that these lawsuits "are part of a pattern of intimidation," and that "Bailey has made statements in public settings that while he understands Radiance will not win certain lawsuits, he wants to put the former employees through the legal process to require them to spend money and time defending the claims, thus sending a message to current employees of Radiance that they cannot leave without a fight." It alleges in paragraph 18 that Bailey "had terminated the past two Presidents" of Radiance; in paragraph 21 that the 14 offers, culled to five, were, "[u]pon information and belief, as well as a mathematical calculation," "in the range of approximately two hundred fifty million dollars ($250,000,000)"; in paragraph 22 that Bailey "required individuals who did have knowledge of the offers, including the BOD members, to sign non-disclosure agreements"; and in paragraph 23 that a sale would have ended his ability to use Radiance's resources to support a small government contractor owned by a member of his family, for which Radiance's executives and technical staff were allegedly required to write proposals. In paragraph 33 it lists the roughly ten senior executives who resigned after the sale was tabled: "the Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Chief Growth Officer (CGO), Chief Capabilities Officer (CCO), a former President/Executive Vice President, and five (5) other Senior Vice Presidents."[^20] The opinion of September 18, 2025 restates the allegation about the family member's company as the plaintiffs' allegation that Bailey "would have been unable to booster" it "(which he had allegedly been doing for years as Radiance's CEO)."[^19]
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### Berry v. Bailey: the motions and the opinion
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The Radiance defendants' motion stated four grounds: preemption by the [[Employee Retirement Income Security Act]] (ERISA) of the state-law claims and failure to exhaust the plan's remedies; no standing, because the plaintiffs "are not Radiance stockholders"; "direct" claims that are "actually derivative"; and, for derivative claims, failure to satisfy procedural requirements and inability to "fairly and adequately represent Radiance's interests" because each plaintiff now works for a competitor. It asked that the claims be dismissed "with prejudice" and stated that PeopleTec, Radiance and [[COLSA]] "compete for federal government contracts."[^18] The Argent defendants' motion argued ERISA preemption of all state-law claims and failure of the ERISA claims.[^21] The plaintiffs' motion to strike (Doc. 49) sought removal of every exhibit except the ESOP and the Trust Agreement, including the pleadings from the Berry and Baker cases (Doc. 42, Exhibits 1, 2 and 11), the LinkedIn biographies, the Alabama case summary and the federal docket sheet, the summary plan description, and the 2022 Form 5500, citing the rule that "courts may not take judicial notice of documents in separate judicial proceedings."[^22]
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Judge Maze's memorandum opinion of September 18, 2025 granted the motions to dismiss on three grounds. First, the plaintiffs lacked standing for the direct claims (Counts I and II): they "do not technically hold 'stock' in Radiance" because the ESOP trustee holds it, the stock appreciation rights are "contractual rights," and the alleged harm "affects all 'stockholders' equally." Second, the plaintiffs did have standing for the derivative claims (Counts III and IV) as "beneficial stockholders" under Alabama Code sections 10A-2A-7.40 and 10A-2A-1.40, but ERISA preempted those claims against the Radiance defendants (by complete preemption and by defensive preemption) and the state-law claims against the Argent defendants (Counts V and VI, by defensive preemption). Third, the plaintiffs failed to exhaust the ESOP's claims procedure, which defeated the ERISA counts (VII and VIII); on the plaintiffs' argument that exhaustion would have been futile, the court wrote: "while it may be true that Radiance would likely have rejected Plaintiffs' claims, Plaintiffs still had to present them before filing suit." The court denied the motion to strike "in part and as moot in part" because it "did not consider the challenged materials, other than the ESOP Plan Summary, to reach its decision," denied the motion to stay discovery as moot, and stated that it would enter a separate order dismissing all claims without prejudice and closing the case.[^19]
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### Political contributions
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@ -108,15 +146,15 @@ The FEC records itemized contributions under the name William C. Bailey, with em
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By committee, the largest totals are Grow the Majority ($270,000, five rows, May 3, 2024 to June 30, 2026); [[Steve Scalise]]'s Scalise Leadership Fund ($115,000, eight rows, May 4, 2021 to April 27, 2026); the Tuberville Victory Fund ($35,000, three rows, October 21, 2023 to March 31, 2025); the Letlow Victory Fund of [[Julia Letlow]] ($27,100, four rows, August 12, 2022 to March 19, 2026); Britt Senate Victory ($26,000, April 28, 2025); Conservative Louisiana ($25,000, March 31, 2026); the Johnson Leadership Fund of [[Mike Johnson]] ($20,000, December 31, 2023); the Strong Victory Fund ($17,000, two rows, February 28 and April 27, 2026); and [[Jerry Carl]] for Congress ($15,570.71, three rows, May 22, 2022 to September 26, 2025).[^6]
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Contributions to members of Congress and senators with intelligence, armed services or appropriations roles are itemized as follows: [[Mike Rogers]] for Congress, $14,500 (seven rows, June 29, 2020 to March 18, 2025) and Mike Rogers Victory, $1,000 (October 10, 2023); [[Dale Strong]] for Congress, $14,100 (five rows, June 11, 2021 to March 19, 2024); [[Katie Britt]], Britt for Alabama Inc., $11,200 (five rows, December 31, 2021 to May 2, 2023), Team Katie, $5,800 (October 26, 2022) and Britt Senate Victory, $5,000 (September 27, 2024); [[Tommy Tuberville]], Tuberville for Senate Inc., $9,500 (three rows, March 29, 2021 to July 25, 2025); [[Mike Turner]], Citizens for Turner, $9,200 (four rows, June 30, 2008 to July 31, 2024); [[Robert Aderholt]] for Congress, $7,057 (three rows, June 21, 2021 to September 30, 2025); [[Mo Brooks]] for Congress, $5,300 (two rows, April 25, 2019 and October 5, 2020); and [[Richard Shelby]], Shelby for U.S. Senate, $2,400 (April 2, 2009). Earlier recipients include [[Jeff Sessions]] (Friends of Sessions Senate Committee, $5,000, January 8, 2020) and [[Doug Jones]] (Doug Jones for Senate Committee, fifteen rows totaling $3,200, August 14, 2019 to October 31, 2020).[^6]
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Contributions to members of Congress and senators with intelligence, armed services or appropriations roles are itemized as follows: [[Mike Rogers]] for Congress, $14,500 (seven rows, June 29, 2020 to March 18, 2025) and Mike Rogers Victory, $1,000 (October 10, 2023); Dale Strong for Congress, $14,100 (five rows, June 11, 2021 to March 19, 2024); Katie Britt, Britt for Alabama Inc., $11,200 (five rows, December 31, 2021 to May 2, 2023), Team Katie, $5,800 (October 26, 2022) and Britt Senate Victory, $5,000 (September 27, 2024); Tommy Tuberville, Tuberville for Senate Inc., $9,500 (three rows, March 29, 2021 to July 25, 2025); [[Mike Turner]], Citizens for Turner, $9,200 (four rows, June 30, 2008 to July 31, 2024); Robert Aderholt for Congress, $7,057 (three rows, June 21, 2021 to September 30, 2025); [[Mo Brooks]] for Congress, $5,300 (two rows, April 25, 2019 and October 5, 2020); and Richard Shelby, Shelby for U.S. Senate, $2,400 (April 2, 2009). Earlier recipients include [[Jeff Sessions]] (Friends of Sessions Senate Committee, $5,000, January 8, 2020) and [[Doug Jones]] (Doug Jones for Senate Committee, fifteen rows totaling $3,200, August 14, 2019 to October 31, 2020).[^6][^23]
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The Radiance PAC (committee C00372979, first filed February 12, 2002) has listed E. Scott Dublin (2002 to 2018), Seth Crochet (2020 to 2024) and Robert Seth Brasher (2026) as treasurer; Bailey is not listed as treasurer. The PAC's own itemized gifts include $37,100 to Rogers, $51,250 to Turner and $25,000 to the Turner Victory Fund.[^6] The Business Council of Alabama lists Bailey on its 2026 board, and [[256 Today]] reported on February 12, 2026 that he is a member of the campaign finance committee of Tuberville's campaign.[^17][^18]
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The Radiance PAC (committee C00372979, first filed February 12, 2002) has listed E. Scott Dublin (2002 to 2018), Seth Crochet (2020 to 2024) and Robert Seth Brasher (2026) as treasurer; Bailey is not listed as treasurer. The PAC's own itemized gifts include $37,100 to Rogers, $51,250 to Turner and $25,000 to the Turner Victory Fund.[^6] The Business Council of Alabama lists Bailey on its 2026 board, and [[256 Today]] reported on February 12, 2026 that he is a member of the campaign finance committee of Tuberville's campaign.[^24][^25]
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### UAP-related claims touching Radiance
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Radiance's president Tim Tinsley told [[KLAS-TV]]'s [[George Knapp]] on October 13, 2022, about a hypothetical request to take apart a UFO, "Why not. I'm waiting for one of those," and "No, we provide customer solutions"; Taylor said "Jay and I are working on growing the capabilities, doing reverse engineering of foreign materials." The report states that Radiance "isn't able to confirm the allegations" about crash-retrieval briefings.[^19] The report does not quote Bailey.
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Radiance's president Tim Tinsley told [[KLAS-TV]]'s [[George Knapp]] on October 13, 2022, about a hypothetical request to take apart a UFO, "Why not. I'm waiting for one of those," and "No, we provide customer solutions"; Taylor said "Jay and I are working on growing the capabilities, doing reverse engineering of foreign materials." The report states that Radiance "isn't able to confirm the allegations" about crash-retrieval briefings.[^26] The report does not quote Bailey.
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On December 3, 2023 [[Liberation Times]] published [[Daniel Sheehan]]'s statement that [[Lockheed Martin]], [[Raytheon]] and "now Radiance Technologies" were "given particular discrete aspects of the technology to try to figure it out." The same article states that the outlet was unable to substantiate the claim, that multiple sources described it as untrue, and that Stratton and Taylor were "in no way involved in any coverup."[^20]
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On December 3, 2023 [[Liberation Times]] published [[Daniel Sheehan]]'s statement that [[Lockheed Martin]], [[Raytheon]] and "now Radiance Technologies" were "given particular discrete aspects of the technology to try to figure it out." The same article states that the outlet was unable to substantiate the claim, that multiple sources described it as untrue, and that Stratton and Taylor were "in no way involved in any coverup."[^27]
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### Footnotes
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@ -136,7 +174,14 @@ On December 3, 2023 [[Liberation Times]] published [[Daniel Sheehan]]'s statemen
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[^14]: Huntsville Business Journal, "The right stuff: local defense company celebrates success," March 19, 2025. https://huntsvillebusinessjournal.com/news/2025/03/19/the-right-stuff-local-defense-company-celebrates-success
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[^15]: 256 Today, "Radiance Technologies promotes Darien Hammett to chief operating officer," April 21, 2026. https://256today.com/radiance-technologies-promotes-darien-hammett-to-chief-operating-officer/
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[^16]: Louisiana Economic Development, "Radiance Technologies Announces $370 Million Microchip Facility in North Louisiana," August 25, 2025. https://www.opportunitylouisiana.gov/news/radiance-technologies-announces-370-million-microchip-facility-in-north-louisiana-to-bolster-and-secure-national-supply-chains
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[^17]: Business Council of Alabama, 2026 Board of Directors. https://www.bcatoday.org/bca-board-of-directors
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[^18]: 256 Today, "North Alabama business leaders anchor Tuberville's campaign finance committee," February 12, 2026. https://256today.com/north-alabama-business-leaders-anchor-tubervilles-campaign-finance-committee/
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[^19]: KLAS-TV 8 News Now (George Knapp), "Is this company working with alien technology in Nevada?" October 13, 2022. https://www.8newsnow.com/news/local-news/is-this-company-working-with-alien-technology-in-nevada/
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[^20]: Liberation Times, Daniel Sheehan interview, December 3, 2023. Sole source for the Sheehan passages so cited. https://www.liberationtimes.com/home/daniel-sheehan-exposes-five-powerful-republicans-blocking-ufo-disclosure-act-as-the-clock-ticks-down
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[^17]: Berry v. Bailey, No. 5:24-cv-00522-CLM (N.D. Ala.), Doc. 1 (notice of removal, April 25, 2024; original state case No. 47-CV-2024-900415), Doc. 33 (caption), and the CourtListener docket entries 1 to 69, last updated September 14, 2026. https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/68716598/berry-v-bailey/ ; https://archive.org/download/gov.uscourts.alnd.189482/gov.uscourts.alnd.189482.33.0.pdf
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[^18]: Berry v. Bailey, Doc. 42, Radiance Defendants' Motion to Dismiss Plaintiffs' Second Amended Complaint and Incorporated Memorandum Brief, Introduction and footnote 20, September 4, 2024. https://archive.org/download/gov.uscourts.alnd.189482/gov.uscourts.alnd.189482.42.0.pdf
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[^19]: Berry v. Bailey, Doc. 68, Memorandum Opinion, September 18, 2025, pages 1 to 18; Doc. 69 (order of dismissal), as listed on the docket. https://archive.org/download/gov.uscourts.alnd.189482/gov.uscourts.alnd.189482.68.0.pdf
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[^20]: Berry v. Bailey, Doc. 33, Second Amended and Restated Verified Complaint, paragraphs 13, 18, 21 to 23 and 33 (pages 5 to 10 and 14), August 21, 2024. https://archive.org/download/gov.uscourts.alnd.189482/gov.uscourts.alnd.189482.33.0.pdf
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[^21]: Berry v. Bailey, Doc. 43, Argent Defendants' motion to dismiss and brief, September 4, 2024, Introduction. https://archive.org/download/gov.uscourts.alnd.189482/gov.uscourts.alnd.189482.43.0.pdf
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[^22]: Berry v. Bailey, Doc. 49, Plaintiffs' Motion to Strike Defendants' Exhibits Submitted in Support of Motions to Dismiss, October 7, 2024, pages 1 to 4; Docs. 48, 53, 55 to 59 as listed. https://archive.org/download/gov.uscourts.alnd.189482/gov.uscourts.alnd.189482.49.0.pdf
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[^23]: Federal Election Commission, Schedule A, committee C00610055 (Mike Rogers Victory), report type YE, contributor "BAILEY, WILLIAM C," occupation CEO, employer Radiance Technologies, October 10, 2023, $1,000, image 202401299600583863. The FEC record also carries a second William C. Bailey with an engineering occupation; the row is attributed by occupation. https://docquery.fec.gov/cgi-bin/fecimg/?202401299600583863
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[^24]: Business Council of Alabama, 2026 Board of Directors. https://www.bcatoday.org/bca-board-of-directors
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[^25]: 256 Today, "North Alabama business leaders anchor Tuberville's campaign finance committee," February 12, 2026. https://256today.com/north-alabama-business-leaders-anchor-tubervilles-campaign-finance-committee/
|
||||
[^26]: KLAS-TV 8 News Now (George Knapp), "Is this company working with alien technology in Nevada?" October 13, 2022. https://www.8newsnow.com/news/local-news/is-this-company-working-with-alien-technology-in-nevada/
|
||||
[^27]: Liberation Times, Daniel Sheehan interview, December 3, 2023. Sole source for the Sheehan passages so cited. https://www.liberationtimes.com/home/daniel-sheehan-exposes-five-powerful-republicans-blocking-ufo-disclosure-act-as-the-clock-ticks-down
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
118
10 - PEOPLE/(A-G)/Bud Cramer.md
Normal file
118
10 - PEOPLE/(A-G)/Bud Cramer.md
Normal file
|
|
@ -0,0 +1,118 @@
|
|||
---
|
||||
category: "People"
|
||||
tags:
|
||||
- Person
|
||||
- Congress
|
||||
- Lobbyist
|
||||
- HuntsvilleAlabama
|
||||
- DefenseContractor
|
||||
- CorporateDirector
|
||||
- Radiance
|
||||
alias:
|
||||
- Robert E. Cramer
|
||||
- Robert E. Cramer Jr.
|
||||
- Robert E. (Bud) Cramer
|
||||
- Robert Cramer
|
||||
- Bud Cramer
|
||||
summary: "Democratic member of the House from Alabama's 5th District from 1991 to 2009, Radiance Technologies director from December 2015, and a lobbyist listed on 535 Group filings; a defendant in Berry v. Bailey."
|
||||
location: "Huntsville, Alabama"
|
||||
relations:
|
||||
- type: member_of
|
||||
with: "[[United States House of Representatives]]"
|
||||
start: 1991-01-03
|
||||
end: 2009-01-03
|
||||
role: "Democratic Representative from Alabama's 5th District, nine terms (102nd through 110th Congresses)"
|
||||
fn: 1
|
||||
- type: director_of
|
||||
with: "[[Radiance Technologies]]"
|
||||
start: 2015-12-21
|
||||
role: "member of the board of directors, announced December 21, 2015; named as a director and defendant in the second amended complaint in Berry v. Bailey filed August 21, 2024"
|
||||
fn: 2
|
||||
- type: employed_by
|
||||
with: "[[535 Group]]"
|
||||
start: 2021
|
||||
role: "named as lobbyist on the registrations and quarterly reports of 535 Group, LLC filed under the Lobbying Disclosure Act from 2021 through 2026"
|
||||
fn: 3
|
||||
- type: represented
|
||||
with: "[[Northrop Grumman]]"
|
||||
start: 2021
|
||||
role: "lobbyist on 535 Group filings for Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation, issue areas Defense, Budget/Appropriations and Taxation, 2021 to 2026"
|
||||
fn: 3
|
||||
- type: represented
|
||||
with: "[[United Launch Alliance]]"
|
||||
start: 2021
|
||||
end: 2025
|
||||
role: "lobbyist on 535 Group filings, issue areas Defense, Budget/Appropriations, Aerospace and Transportation"
|
||||
fn: 3
|
||||
- type: represented
|
||||
with: "[[Leidos]]"
|
||||
start: 2023
|
||||
role: "lobbyist on 535 Group filings, issue areas Homeland Security, Defense, Budget/Appropriations and Aviation, 2023 to 2026"
|
||||
fn: 3
|
||||
- type: represented
|
||||
with: "[[Technology Service Corporation]]"
|
||||
start: 2022
|
||||
end: 2022
|
||||
role: "listed as lobbyist on the 535 Group registration for the client filed in the fourth quarter of 2022 (issue areas Defense, Budget/Appropriations and Small Business); the client's reports from 2023 through the second quarter of 2026 list a different 535 Group lobbyist"
|
||||
fn: 3
|
||||
- type: represented
|
||||
with: "[[Maxar Technologies]]"
|
||||
start: 2021
|
||||
end: 2023
|
||||
role: "lobbyist on 535 Group filings, issue areas Defense, Budget/Appropriations and Aerospace"
|
||||
fn: 3
|
||||
- type: represented
|
||||
with: "[[Capstone Research Corporation]]"
|
||||
start: 2025
|
||||
role: "lobbyist on 535 Group filings, issue areas Defense and Budget/Appropriations, 2025 to 2026"
|
||||
fn: 3
|
||||
- type: represented
|
||||
with: "[[Huntsville-Madison County Airport Authority]]"
|
||||
start: 2021
|
||||
role: "lobbyist on 535 Group filings, 2021 to 2026"
|
||||
fn: 3
|
||||
- type: represented
|
||||
with: "[[HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology]]"
|
||||
start: 2021
|
||||
end: 2025
|
||||
role: "lobbyist on 535 Group filings for the client listed as HudsonAlpha Institute of Biotechnology"
|
||||
fn: 3
|
||||
- type: defendant_in
|
||||
with: "[[Berry v. Bailey]]"
|
||||
start: 2024-04-25
|
||||
end: 2025-09-18
|
||||
role: "named defendant as a Radiance director in Berry v. Bailey, No. 5:24-cv-00522 (N.D. Ala.); all claims dismissed without prejudice September 18, 2025"
|
||||
fn: 4
|
||||
created: 2026-10-04
|
||||
updated: 2026-10-04
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
Robert E. "Bud" Cramer Jr. was born in [[Huntsville]], [[Alabama]], on August 22, 1947. The [[Biographical Directory of the United States Congress]] lists a B.A. from the [[University of Alabama]] (1969) and a J.D. from the University of Alabama Law School (1972), service in the [[United States Army]] in 1972 and the [[United States Army Reserve]] from 1976 to 1978, work as an assistant district attorney of [[Madison County, Alabama]] (1973 to 1975), private law practice, and service as district attorney of Madison County from 1981 to 1990.[^1]
|
||||
|
||||
### House of Representatives, 1991 to 2009
|
||||
|
||||
The Biographical Directory records that Cramer was "elected as a Democrat to the One Hundred Second and to the eight succeeding Congresses (January 3, 1991-January 3, 2009)" and "was not a candidate for reelection to the One Hundred Eleventh Congress in 2008." Each of the nine terms was for Alabama's 5th Congressional District.[^1]
|
||||
|
||||
### Radiance Technologies board, from December 2015
|
||||
|
||||
On December 21, 2015 [[Radiance Technologies]] posted an [[AL.com]] article under the headline "Former Congressman Bud Cramer joins Radiance board of directors." The article states that Cramer "has joined the board of directors at Radiance Technologies," that he "retired in 2008 after serving nine terms in the U.S. House of Representatives representing Huntsville and north Alabama" and that he "is now working as a lobbyist in Washington." The article's photograph caption describes a December 4, 2015 ceremony at which Cramer "donated $50,000 to UAH to help store and preserve his documents from his time in Congress" ([[University of Alabama in Huntsville]]). [[Bill Bailey]], then president of Radiance, is quoted: "We could not be more proud to have Congressman Cramer joining the Radiance team. His experience in Washington and his insight will be a tremendous asset for our customers and our future growth." The article gives Cramer's statement: "Radiance Technologies has grown over the last 15 years to become one of the most respected aerospace and defense technology firms in the country and I am proud to join their team."[^2]
|
||||
|
||||
### 535 Group lobbying filings
|
||||
|
||||
Reports filed under the [[Lobbying Disclosure Act]] by [[535 Group]], LLC, registered as "Government Relations Consulting" in [[Washington, D.C.]], name Robert Cramer as a lobbyist. He is named as a lobbyist on the registrations and reports of the following clients, with the years of those filings and the general issue areas reported:
|
||||
|
||||
[[Northrop Grumman]] Systems Corporation (2021 to 2026; Defense, Budget/Appropriations, Taxation); [[United Launch Alliance]] (2021 to 2025; Defense, Budget/Appropriations, Aerospace, Transportation); [[Leidos]] (2023 to 2026; Homeland Security, Defense, Budget/Appropriations, Aviation); [[Technology Service Corporation]] (registration filed in the fourth quarter of 2022 only; Defense, Budget/Appropriations, Small Business; the client's later reports from 2023 through 2026 list another 535 Group lobbyist); [[Maxar Technologies]] (2021 to 2023; Defense, Budget/Appropriations, Aerospace); [[Capstone Research Corporation]] (2025 to 2026; Defense, Budget/Appropriations); [[Hawkeye 360]], through Reston Strategy Group, LLC (2021 to 2023; Defense, Budget/Appropriations); the MSPs for the Protection of Critical Infrastructure, "The Collective" (2023 to 2025; Computer Industry, Defense, Budget/Appropriations); the [[Boy Scouts of America]] (2021 to 2022; Bankruptcy, Budget/Appropriations); the City of Huntsville (2021 to 2026); the [[Huntsville-Madison County Airport Authority]] (2021 to 2026); [[Huntsville Hospital Health System]] (2021 to 2026); the Solid Waste Disposal Authority of the City of Huntsville (2021 to 2026); and the [[HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology|HudsonAlpha Institute of Biotechnology]] (2021 to 2025).[^3]
|
||||
|
||||
### Berry v. Bailey
|
||||
|
||||
Cramer is the first of the directors listed in paragraph 8 of the second amended verified complaint in [[Berry v. Bailey]], (Doc. 33, filed August 21, 2024) by five former Radiance employees in the [[United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama]] (removed April 25, 2024 from the [[Madison County Circuit Court]]). Paragraph 8(a) pleads: "Cramer who is an adult resident of Madison County, Alabama." The complaint does not describe him as an employee of Radiance, as it does [[Jim Scanlon]], [[Jed Deason]] and [[Carol Tevepaugh]]. It alleges that the board, which it defines to include Cramer, "voted to table the sale" of Radiance after receiving about 14 offers, that five of them were "in a range of two times (2X) the ESOP's last appraised value" and "approximately two hundred fifty million dollars ($250,000,000)," that Bailey "required individuals who did have knowledge of the offers, including the BOD members, to sign non-disclosure agreements," and that the board members "did no due diligence" on Bailey's representations. Count II pleads a direct state-law breach of fiduciary duty against the board members, Count IV the derivative counterpart, and Count VII a claim under the [[Employee Retirement Income Security Act]]. These are the plaintiffs' allegations.[^4]
|
||||
|
||||
[[Corey L. Maze]], the presiding judge, dismissed the state-law claims for lack of standing (direct claims) or ERISA preemption (derivative claims) and the ERISA claims for failure to exhaust the plan's claims procedure, and dismissed all claims without prejudice on September 18, 2025, without a ruling on the facts alleged.[^5]
|
||||
|
||||
### Footnotes
|
||||
|
||||
[^1]: "CRAMER, Robert E. (Bud), Jr.," Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, bioguide.congress.gov (identifier C000868), Wayback Machine capture of 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/2015/http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=C000868 ; term dates (nine terms, Alabama 5th District, January 3, 1991 to January 3, 2009) from the Biographical Directory data as compiled in the congress-legislators dataset, https://unitedstates.github.io/congress-legislators/legislators-historical.json
|
||||
[^2]: "Former Congressman Bud Cramer joins Radiance board of directors," Radiance Technologies, December 21, 2015 (reprinting AL.com), Wayback Machine capture of February 6, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160206090857/https://www.radiancetech.com/former-congressman-bud-cramer-joins-huntsville-technology-company/
|
||||
[^3]: Senate Office of Public Records and House Clerk lobbying disclosure filings (Lobbying Disclosure Act), registrant 535 GROUP, LLC (registrant identifier 401105906), registrations and quarterly reports 2021 to 2026, lobbyist listing, client names and general issue areas, retrieved through the lda.gov filings API on October 4, 2026. https://lda.gov/api/v1/filings/?registrant_name=535+Group
|
||||
[^4]: Berry v. Bailey, No. 5:24-cv-00522-CLM (N.D. Ala.), Doc. 33 (second amended verified complaint, filed August 21, 2024), caption and paragraphs 8, 9, 20 to 22, 26 to 30, counts II, IV and VII. https://archive.org/download/gov.uscourts.alnd.189482/gov.uscourts.alnd.189482.33.0.pdf
|
||||
[^5]: Berry v. Bailey, No. 5:24-cv-00522-CLM, Doc. 68, Memorandum Opinion (September 18, 2025) and Doc. 69, order of dismissal without prejudice. https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCOURTS-alnd-5_24-cv-00522/pdf/USCOURTS-alnd-5_24-cv-00522-0.pdf
|
||||
|
|
@ -16,20 +16,20 @@ summary: "Second son of Elizabeth II, friend of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Ma
|
|||
born: 1960-02-19
|
||||
location: "London, United Kingdom"
|
||||
created: 2026-06-20
|
||||
updated: 2026-09-25
|
||||
updated: 2026-10-04
|
||||
relations:
|
||||
- type: participant_in
|
||||
with: "[[Giuffre v. Prince Andrew]]"
|
||||
role: "defendant"
|
||||
start: 2021-08-09
|
||||
end: 2022-03-08
|
||||
fn: 16
|
||||
fn: 21
|
||||
- type: investigated
|
||||
with: "[[Thames Valley Police]]"
|
||||
reverse: true
|
||||
role: "arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office; released under investigation"
|
||||
start: 2026-02-19
|
||||
fn: 23
|
||||
fn: 28
|
||||
- type: relative_of
|
||||
with: "[[Elizabeth II]]"
|
||||
role: "son"
|
||||
|
|
@ -38,6 +38,16 @@ relations:
|
|||
with: "[[Charles III]]"
|
||||
role: "brother"
|
||||
fn: 1
|
||||
- type: subject_of
|
||||
with: "[[Cantor Fitzgerald]]"
|
||||
start: 2013-08-29
|
||||
role: 'the "PA" of the August 29, 2013 Cantor Fitzgerald term sheet "from Howard to PA" for a joint venture, Cantor Urramoor Asset Management (preliminary draft), and of a November 2013 draft referral agreement (unsigned); the BBC reported on July 14, 2026 that the deal "came to nothing"'
|
||||
fn: 6
|
||||
- type: advised_by
|
||||
with: "[[David Stern (business adviser)]]"
|
||||
start: 2013-07-10
|
||||
role: 'described by the BBC (July 14, 2026) as "the prince\'s business aide"; sender of the July 10, 2013 note "Just met him with PA" and of the September 2, 2013 exchange on the Cantor term sheet'
|
||||
fn: 8
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor (born February 19, 1960) is the second son of [[Elizabeth II|Queen Elizabeth II]] and [[Prince Philip|Prince Philip]]. He served in the Royal Navy, including during the 1982 Falklands War, and held the title Duke of York from his 1986 marriage to [[Sarah Ferguson|Sarah Ferguson]]. His association with [[Jeffrey Epstein|Jeffrey Epstein]] and [[Ghislaine Maxwell|Ghislaine Maxwell]] became the subject of sustained press coverage, a 2019 [[BBC|BBC]] interview, a 2021 civil lawsuit brought by [[Virginia Giuffre|Virginia Giuffre]], and a 2022 settlement. In late 2025 King [[Charles III|Charles III]] initiated the removal of Andrew's royal style and titles, after which he is known as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor. Andrew has consistently denied Giuffre's allegations.[^1][^2]
|
||||
|
|
@ -54,57 +64,71 @@ Andrew served as a [[United Kingdom]] trade envoy, a Special Representative for
|
|||
|
||||
The dinner at the townhouse was organized by the publicist [[Peggy Siegal]]. Writing to the ABC News anchor [[George Stephanopoulos]] on December 1, 2010, she said: "I am putting together a very last minute casual dinner for Prince Andrew, who is in New York on an unofficial private visit. Please come and bring [your wife]. The list for far...and we are keeping this private and small... Prince Andrew, [[Woody Allen]] and [[Soon-Yi Previn|Soon-Yi]], [[Katie Couric]]....Jeffrey Epstein, where Andrew is staying. Jeffrey's house is one the largest single dwellings in New York...it's beautiful." Stephanopoulos accepted ("We'd love to Peggy...thanks...right around the corner from our house!"), and Siegal replied that the dinner would begin at 8 p.m., "So come on time and you will have private time with Andrew because he is staying at the house." On December 2 Stephanopoulos wrote that he could still come but his wife, [[Ali Wentworth]], could not; Siegal answered, "OK...we will take a chair away." The chain was preserved in Epstein's email account.[^3] Epstein had been released from his Florida sentence seventeen months earlier.
|
||||
|
||||
### The 2013 Cantor Fitzgerald Proposal
|
||||
|
||||
On July 10, 2013 [[David Stern (business adviser)|David Stern]], whom the BBC describes as "the prince's business aide," wrote to Jeffrey Epstein: "What is your view on Howard Lutnick ? Just met him with PA." Epstein replied twenty-three minutes later, by the header times: "My neighbor smart." The documents do not state where the meeting took place or expand "PA."[^4]
|
||||
|
||||
On August 9, 2013 a message displayed as sent by "The Duke" forwarded to Stern a solicitor's attendance note of an August 8 telephone call to [[New York City|New York]], filed under "Urramoor" and headed "HL Asset Management etc." Stern sent it on to Epstein under the subject "HL Loan - CD/SM call note 8.8.13." The note records that "It is common ground that no PG will be required from AC" and that "the commitment by AC to contribute any profits derived from the similar activity carried on outside the assets management company would be acceptable until such time as the debt was repaid." Epstein answered: "no no no no no, howards main businesss is gambing in las vegas. he will have to disclose to the las vegas commsion his arrangeent and you will have holy hell to pay."[^5]
|
||||
|
||||
A term sheet dated August 29, 2013, "Preliminary Draft for Discussion Purposes Only," described a joint venture "to be known as Cantor Urramoor Asset Management" between a wholly owned subsidiary of [[Cantor Fitzgerald]] and "[Urramoor], an entity owned by a trust created by Mr. T." It provided that "the Company would advance the sum of £1,000,000 to Urramoor which would accrue interest at an annual rate of 3.5%, compounded annually," and that "Mr. T would refer all business opportunities (including his affiliates' business opportunities) to the Company." It ends: "It is not a commitment to form the Company, either express or implied." On September 2, 2013 Stern forwarded it to Epstein as "term sheet from Howard to PA. I think madness. They are still at it. We kill it ?" Epstein proposed a counter: "fifty fifty split, first 1 millino to offset loan, no subs acting without written agreement as to fee and profits . no exclusivity." Stern asked, "Instead of 50/50, can we do 40/40/20 ? 20 for me.... This is original PA idea," and Epstein answered "yes."[^6]
|
||||
|
||||
A draft "Agreement for Referrals" of November 2013 between Cantor Opportunities, LLC and "Urramoor Limited," with blank signature blocks and a joinder line headed "David Stern," replaced the joint venture with a referral arrangement in which a referral fee to Cantor "would be split 50/50 with UML." On November 16, 2013 Stern asked Epstein, "Have you seen Cantor Fitzgerald proposal?" and Epstein replied "goofy."[^7]
|
||||
|
||||
[[Companies House]] lists Urramoor Limited (company number 08424933, incorporated February 28, 2013, dissolved April 1, 2025) with a person with significant control named "Hrh Andrew Inverness," notified April 6, 2016, whose nature of control is "Has significant influence or control over the trustees of a trust."[^5]
|
||||
|
||||
The BBC reported on July 14, 2026 that [[Simon Andriesz]] found in the released files that a firm of [[Howard Lutnick]] "had made plans in 2013 to go into business with" Andrew, and that "Under the proposed terms of the deal, £1m would be loaned to a firm controlled by the prince, which would then be bound to do business exclusively with Cantor Fitzgerald." The BBC wrote that Lutnick "had been friends with Ferguson" (Andrew's former wife, Sarah Ferguson) "since the 1990s and was a guest at Princess Eugenie's wedding in 2018," and that advisers to both sides "discussed the deal for four months, from August to November 2013, but it came to nothing." Cantor Fitzgerald "did not deny the talks took place but told the BBC it did not go into business with the former prince." Andrew "did not respond to a request for comment."[^8]
|
||||
|
||||
### JPMorgan's Project Jeep Review
|
||||
|
||||
After Epstein's July 2019 arrest, [[JPMorgan Chase|JPMorgan]]'s compliance staff reviewed his correspondence with the bank's executives in an internal project code-named "Project Jeep." Its October 2019 summary, quoted by the [[United States Virgin Islands]] in its 2023 suit against the bank, stated: "Jeffrey Epstein appears to maintain a particularly close relationship with Prince Andrew the [Duke] of York and Lord Peter Mandelson, a senior member of the British Government. He also appears to have a close relationship with Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem who is a senior [[United Arab Emirates|UAE]] official involved in ownership of the Dubai Ports."[^4] [[Peter Mandelson]] had been business secretary from 2008 to 2010, while Andrew was trade envoy; [[Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem]] then headed the Dubai ports operator [[DP World]].[^5][^6]
|
||||
After Epstein's July 2019 arrest, [[JPMorgan Chase|JPMorgan]]'s compliance staff reviewed his correspondence with the bank's executives in an internal project code-named "Project Jeep." Its October 2019 summary, quoted by the [[United States Virgin Islands]] in its 2023 suit against the bank, stated: "Jeffrey Epstein appears to maintain a particularly close relationship with Prince Andrew the [Duke] of York and Lord Peter Mandelson, a senior member of the British Government. He also appears to have a close relationship with Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem who is a senior [[United Arab Emirates|UAE]] official involved in ownership of the Dubai Ports."[^9] [[Peter Mandelson]] had been business secretary from 2008 to 2010, while Andrew was trade envoy; [[Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem]] then headed the Dubai ports operator [[DP World]].[^10][^11]
|
||||
|
||||
On January 6, 2015 a correspondent whose name is redacted wrote to Epstein's personal email address: "What hidden cameras in guest room walls?" The message contained only a link to a *[[Daily Mirror|Mirror]]* article whose address read "prince-andrew-been-secretly-filmed."[^7]
|
||||
On January 6, 2015 a correspondent whose name is redacted wrote to Epstein's personal email address: "What hidden cameras in guest room walls?" The message contained only a link to a *[[Daily Mirror|Mirror]]* article whose address read "prince-andrew-been-secretly-filmed."[^12]
|
||||
|
||||
### The Mutual Legal Assistance Request
|
||||
|
||||
On June 8, 2020, after *The Hill* reported that prosecutors in New York had asked to question Andrew, an agent in the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation|FBI]]'s New York field office forwarded the story to a supervisor with the question: "what's the latest with the Epstein case? Anything new on this MLAT request for Prince Andrew?" Another agent in the chain wrote that "SDNY planned on speaking with the USA a week or so ago," referring to the [[Southern District of New York]] and the [[United States]] Attorney.[^8]
|
||||
On June 8, 2020, after *The Hill* reported that prosecutors in New York had asked to question Andrew, an agent in the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation|FBI]]'s New York field office forwarded the story to a supervisor with the question: "what's the latest with the Epstein case? Anything new on this MLAT request for Prince Andrew?" Another agent in the chain wrote that "[[U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York|SDNY]] planned on speaking with the USA a week or so ago," referring to the [[Southern District of New York]] and the [[United States]] Attorney.[^13]
|
||||
|
||||
### The 2001 Photograph
|
||||
|
||||
A photograph dated to March 2001 shows Andrew with his arm around the waist of Giuffre, then 17, with Maxwell standing behind them in a doorway. According to the account associated with the image and with Giuffre's later filings, the photograph was taken at Maxwell's home in the Belgravia district of London. The Mail on Sunday published a cropped version of the photograph in 2011 and the full image circulated in 2019.[^9]
|
||||
A photograph dated to March 2001 shows Andrew with his arm around the waist of Giuffre, then 17, with Maxwell standing behind them in a doorway. According to the account associated with the image and with Giuffre's later filings, the photograph was taken at Maxwell's home in the Belgravia district of London. The Mail on Sunday published a cropped version of the photograph in 2011 and the full image circulated in 2019.[^14]
|
||||
|
||||
Giuffre said she had been flown to London by Epstein, had gone to the [[Tramp (nightclub)|Tramp]] nightclub with Andrew and others on the evening of March 10, 2001, and was then directed to have sex with Andrew at Maxwell's Belgravia house, an account Andrew has denied. Andrew questioned the photograph in public statements, saying in 2019 he had "no recollection" of the image being taken and could not confirm whether it had been doctored, while noting he was not in the habit of wearing the clothes shown. Maxwell, in her own statements, has at points cast doubt on the surrounding account. The *Mirror* reported that Giuffre's lawyers held the original photograph, and questions about the absence of the negative recurred in commentary.[^9] In her posthumous memoir [[Nobody's Girl]], Giuffre wrote that Epstein himself took the photograph.[^10]
|
||||
Giuffre said she had been flown to London by Epstein, had gone to the [[Tramp (nightclub)|Tramp]] nightclub with Andrew and others on the evening of March 10, 2001, and was then directed to have sex with Andrew at Maxwell's Belgravia house, an account Andrew has denied. Andrew questioned the photograph in public statements, saying in 2019 he had "no recollection" of the image being taken and could not confirm whether it had been doctored, while noting he was not in the habit of wearing the clothes shown. Maxwell, in her own statements, has at points cast doubt on the surrounding account. The *Mirror* reported that Giuffre's lawyers held the original photograph, and questions about the absence of the negative recurred in commentary.[^14] In her posthumous memoir [[Nobody's Girl]], Giuffre wrote that Epstein himself took the photograph.[^15]
|
||||
|
||||
Andrew also addressed the photograph in the 2019 interview by saying the clothing and the setting did not match his recollection and by raising what he described as inconsistencies, while Maitlis pressed him on why he could not simply confirm or deny that he had been at the locations Giuffre described. He maintained that he had no memory of ever meeting Giuffre.[^11]
|
||||
Andrew also addressed the photograph in the 2019 interview by saying the clothing and the setting did not match his recollection and by raising what he described as inconsistencies, while Maitlis pressed him on why he could not simply confirm or deny that he had been at the locations Giuffre described. He maintained that he had no memory of ever meeting Giuffre.[^16]
|
||||
|
||||
### The Sjoberg Deposition and Other Testimony
|
||||
|
||||
[[Johanna Sjoberg]], who worked for Epstein as a masseuse, testified in a 2016 deposition in [[Giuffre v. Maxwell]] that in 2001, when she was 21, she was at Epstein's Manhattan home with Andrew and Giuffre when Maxwell took her to fetch a caricature puppet of Andrew from the satirical television series [[Spitting Image]]. She testified that she sat on Andrew's lap while Giuffre sat beside him with the puppet on her lap, that the group was photographed with the puppet's hand placed on Giuffre's breast, and that Andrew then put his hand on Sjoberg's breast. Asked about the puppet in her own deposition, Maxwell said: "Not a puppet. I don't know how you would describe it. A caricature of Prince Andrew," and "I recollect the puppet but I don't recollect anything around the puppet." Buckingham Palace had earlier called Sjoberg's allegations "categorically untrue." After the deposition was released in the January 2024 unsealing, the [[Metropolitan Police]] said: "No investigation has been launched."[^12]
|
||||
[[Johanna Sjoberg]], who worked for Epstein as a masseuse, testified in a 2016 deposition in [[Giuffre v. Maxwell]] that in 2001, when she was 21, she was at Epstein's Manhattan home with Andrew and Giuffre when Maxwell took her to fetch a caricature puppet of Andrew from the satirical television series [[Spitting Image]]. She testified that she sat on Andrew's lap while Giuffre sat beside him with the puppet on her lap, that the group was photographed with the puppet's hand placed on Giuffre's breast, and that Andrew then put his hand on Sjoberg's breast. Asked about the puppet in her own deposition, Maxwell said: "Not a puppet. I don't know how you would describe it. A caricature of Prince Andrew," and "I recollect the puppet but I don't recollect anything around the puppet." Buckingham Palace had earlier called Sjoberg's allegations "categorically untrue." After the deposition was released in the January 2024 unsealing, the [[Metropolitan Police]] said: "No investigation has been launched."[^17]
|
||||
|
||||
[[Adriana Ross]], a former Epstein employee named in the 2007 [[Epstein non-prosecution agreement|non-prosecution agreement]] as a potential co-conspirator, repeatedly invoked her Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination when questioned in 2010 about Andrew's alleged involvement.[^13]
|
||||
[[Adriana Ross]], a former Epstein employee named in the 2007 [[Epstein non-prosecution agreement|non-prosecution agreement]] as a potential co-conspirator, repeatedly invoked her Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination when questioned in 2010 about Andrew's alleged involvement.[^18]
|
||||
|
||||
### The 2019 BBC Newsnight Interview
|
||||
|
||||
On November 16, 2019, Andrew recorded an interview at Buckingham Palace with [[Emily Maitlis|Emily Maitlis]] for the BBC program [[Newsnight|Newsnight]], broadcast on November 16 and running about 58 minutes, addressing his relationship with Epstein and Giuffre's allegations. Andrew said he could not have been with Giuffre on the night of March 10, 2001, that she described because he had been at home and had taken his daughter [[Princess Beatrice|Princess Beatrice]] to a Pizza Express restaurant in Woking for a children's party, an outing he said he remembered because going to a Pizza Express in Woking was "an unusual thing for me to do."[^11]
|
||||
On November 16, 2019, Andrew recorded an interview at Buckingham Palace with [[Emily Maitlis|Emily Maitlis]] for the BBC program [[Newsnight|Newsnight]], broadcast on November 16 and running about 58 minutes, addressing his relationship with Epstein and Giuffre's allegations. Andrew said he could not have been with Giuffre on the night of March 10, 2001, that she described because he had been at home and had taken his daughter [[Princess Beatrice|Princess Beatrice]] to a Pizza Express restaurant in Woking for a children's party, an outing he said he remembered because going to a Pizza Express in Woking was "an unusual thing for me to do."[^16]
|
||||
|
||||
Andrew also said he had "a peculiar medical condition" that meant he did not sweat at the time, which he attributed to an adrenaline overdose dating to the Falklands War, in response to Giuffre's description of him perspiring at the Tramp nightclub. He described his stay at Epstein's home after the 2008 conviction as a decision he made because it was "convenient," a characterization widely criticized, and said he did not regret the friendship overall because of the contacts it had brought, before later expressing regret in subsequent statements. He said he had "no recollection" of meeting Giuffre.[^11]
|
||||
Andrew also said he had "a peculiar medical condition" that meant he did not sweat at the time, which he attributed to an adrenaline overdose dating to the Falklands War, in response to Giuffre's description of him perspiring at the Tramp nightclub. He described his stay at Epstein's home after the 2008 conviction as a decision he made because it was "convenient," a characterization widely criticized, and said he did not regret the friendship overall because of the contacts it had brought, before later expressing regret in subsequent statements. He said he had "no recollection" of meeting Giuffre.[^16]
|
||||
|
||||
The interview was widely characterized as damaging to Andrew. Within days, on November 20, 2019, he announced he was stepping back from public royal duties "for the foreseeable future," saying his association with Epstein had become "a major disruption to my family's work." He said he continued to "unequivocally regret" the association, denied Giuffre's allegations, and said he was willing to assist any appropriate law enforcement agency if required. A Netflix dramatization, *Scoop*, and other accounts later reconstructed the negotiation and conduct of the interview.[^1][^11]
|
||||
The interview was widely characterized as damaging to Andrew. Within days, on November 20, 2019, he announced he was stepping back from public royal duties "for the foreseeable future," saying his association with Epstein had become "a major disruption to my family's work." He said he continued to "unequivocally regret" the association, denied Giuffre's allegations, and said he was willing to assist any appropriate law enforcement agency if required. A Netflix dramatization, *Scoop*, and other accounts later reconstructed the negotiation and conduct of the interview.[^1][^16]
|
||||
|
||||
### The 2021 Lawsuit and 2022 Settlement
|
||||
|
||||
On August 9, 2021, Giuffre filed a civil lawsuit against Andrew, captioned against "Prince Andrew, Duke of York, a/k/a Andrew Albert Christian Edward, in his personal capacity," in the [[United States District Court for the Southern District of New York|Southern District of New York]], [[Giuffre v. Prince Andrew]] (No. 1:21-cv-06702), alleging he had sexually abused her on three occasions when she was 17, including at Maxwell's London home, at Epstein's Manhattan townhouse, and on Little St. James. The suit was brought under New York's Child Victims Act, which had temporarily revived expired civil claims. Andrew strenuously denied the allegations and sought dismissal.[^2][^14]
|
||||
On August 9, 2021, Giuffre filed a civil lawsuit against Andrew, captioned against "Prince Andrew, Duke of York, a/k/a Andrew Albert Christian Edward, in his personal capacity," in the [[United States District Court for the Southern District of New York|Southern District of New York]], [[Giuffre v. Prince Andrew]] (No. 1:21-cv-06702), alleging he had sexually abused her on three occasions when she was 17, including at Maxwell's London home, at Epstein's Manhattan townhouse, and on Little St. James. The suit was brought under New York's Child Victims Act, which had temporarily revived expired civil claims. Andrew strenuously denied the allegations and sought dismissal.[^2][^19]
|
||||
|
||||
Andrew's lawyers argued that a 2009 settlement Giuffre had signed with Epstein, under which Epstein paid her 500,000 dollars and she released a category of potential defendants, also barred her claim against Andrew. Andrew's lawyers placed the 2009 agreement before the court as Exhibit A to an October 29, 2021 request for judicial notice. The agreement, which resolved Giuffre's Florida suit as Jane Doe No. 102, released Epstein's agents and employees and "any other person or entity who could have been included as a potential defendant," and recited that it was made "pursuant to and in fulfillment of" Epstein's obligations under his 2007 non-prosecution agreement with the [[U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida]].[^15] On December 16, 2021, Judge [[Lewis Kaplan|Lewis Kaplan]] took judicial notice of the agreement but declined to notice Andrew's other proposed exhibits (ECF No. 57), and on December 31, 2021 he denied Andrew's request to depose Giuffre and take "limited jurisdictional discovery" before ruling on the motion (ECF No. 61). After the 2009 agreement was unsealed on January 3, 2022, Kaplan signed an opinion on January 11, 2022, filed January 12 (ECF No. 64), holding that the release language was ambiguous and did not clearly cover Andrew, and denying the motion to dismiss "in all respects." He added that "nothing in this opinion or previously in these proceedings properly may be construed as indicating a view with respect to the truth of the charges or countercharges or as to the intention of the parties in entering into the 2009 Agreement." The 2009 document did not name Andrew.[^16][^17]
|
||||
Andrew's lawyers argued that a 2009 settlement Giuffre had signed with Epstein, under which Epstein paid her 500,000 dollars and she released a category of potential defendants, also barred her claim against Andrew. Andrew's lawyers placed the 2009 agreement before the court as Exhibit A to an October 29, 2021 request for judicial notice. The agreement, which resolved Giuffre's Florida suit as Jane Doe No. 102, released Epstein's agents and employees and "any other person or entity who could have been included as a potential defendant," and recited that it was made "pursuant to and in fulfillment of" Epstein's obligations under his 2007 non-prosecution agreement with the [[U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida]].[^20] On December 16, 2021, Judge [[Lewis Kaplan|Lewis Kaplan]] took judicial notice of the agreement but declined to notice Andrew's other proposed exhibits (ECF No. 57), and on December 31, 2021 he denied Andrew's request to depose Giuffre and take "limited jurisdictional discovery" before ruling on the motion (ECF No. 61). After the 2009 agreement was unsealed on January 3, 2022, Kaplan signed an opinion on January 11, 2022, filed January 12 (ECF No. 64), holding that the release language was ambiguous and did not clearly cover Andrew, and denying the motion to dismiss "in all respects." He added that "nothing in this opinion or previously in these proceedings properly may be construed as indicating a view with respect to the truth of the charges or countercharges or as to the intention of the parties in entering into the 2009 Agreement." The 2009 document did not name Andrew.[^21][^22]
|
||||
|
||||
The day after Kaplan's ruling, on January 13, 2022, Buckingham Palace announced with the Queen's "approval and agreement" that Andrew's military affiliations and royal patronages, including his role as Colonel of the [[Grenadier Guards|Grenadier Guards]], were being returned to the Queen and that Andrew would no longer use the style His Royal Highness in any official capacity, defending the case thereafter as a private citizen.[^18] On February 15, 2022, the parties filed notice of a settlement before Kaplan. The filing stated that Andrew intended to make "a substantial donation to Ms. Giuffre's charity in support of victims' rights," that "Prince Andrew has never intended to malign Ms. Giuffre's character," and that he "accepts that she has suffered both as an established victim of abuse and as a result of unfair public attacks." The settlement contained no admission of liability, and the filing stated that the sum was not being disclosed. Press reporting estimated the value in the range of 12 million pounds, with other reporting citing figures around 7.5 million pounds; the actual amount was not made public. The stipulation of dismissal, filed and so-ordered on March 8, 2022 (ECF No. 83), recites "the parties' settlement agreement dated February 12, 2022," three days before the public notice.[^2][^14][^16] After Giuffre's death in April 2025, the Western Australian proceedings over her estate described its assets as including what remained of the settlement, reported at 12 million pounds.[^19]
|
||||
The day after Kaplan's ruling, on January 13, 2022, Buckingham Palace announced with the Queen's "approval and agreement" that Andrew's military affiliations and royal patronages, including his role as Colonel of the [[Grenadier Guards|Grenadier Guards]], were being returned to the Queen and that Andrew would no longer use the style His Royal Highness in any official capacity, defending the case thereafter as a private citizen.[^23] On February 15, 2022, the parties filed notice of a settlement before Kaplan. The filing stated that Andrew intended to make "a substantial donation to Ms. Giuffre's charity in support of victims' rights," that "Prince Andrew has never intended to malign Ms. Giuffre's character," and that he "accepts that she has suffered both as an established victim of abuse and as a result of unfair public attacks." The settlement contained no admission of liability, and the filing stated that the sum was not being disclosed. Press reporting estimated the value in the range of 12 million pounds, with other reporting citing figures around 7.5 million pounds; the actual amount was not made public. The stipulation of dismissal, filed and so-ordered on March 8, 2022 (ECF No. 83), recites "the parties' settlement agreement dated February 12, 2022," three days before the public notice.[^2][^19][^21] After Giuffre's death in April 2025, the Western Australian proceedings over her estate described its assets as including what remained of the settlement, reported at 12 million pounds.[^24]
|
||||
|
||||
### Removal of Titles
|
||||
|
||||
On October 17, 2025, Andrew announced he would no longer use his title of Duke of York or the other honors conferred on him, while continuing to deny the allegations against him. The announcement came amid renewed attention following Giuffre's death and the imminent publication of her posthumous memoir Nobody's Girl, and after reporting on emails and on the terms of his occupation of Royal Lodge.[^20]
|
||||
On October 17, 2025, Andrew announced he would no longer use his title of Duke of York or the other honors conferred on him, while continuing to deny the allegations against him. The announcement came amid renewed attention following Giuffre's death and the imminent publication of her posthumous memoir Nobody's Girl, and after reporting on emails and on the terms of his occupation of Royal Lodge.[^25]
|
||||
|
||||
On October 30, 2025, Buckingham Palace announced that King Charles III had that day "initiated a formal process to remove the Style, Titles and Honours of Prince Andrew." A Warrant under the King's Royal Sign Manual dated October 30, 2025, directed the Secretary of State to cause the Duke of York to be removed from the Roll of the Peerage with immediate effect. Letters Patent under the Great Seal of the Realm dated November 3, 2025, declared that Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor would no longer be entitled to hold the style "Royal Highness" or the titular dignity of "Prince." The actions were effected through the royal prerogative and published in the London Gazette by the Crown Office, rather than through Parliament.[^21][^22]
|
||||
On October 30, 2025, Buckingham Palace announced that King Charles III had that day "initiated a formal process to remove the Style, Titles and Honours of Prince Andrew." A Warrant under the King's Royal Sign Manual dated October 30, 2025, directed the Secretary of State to cause the Duke of York to be removed from the Roll of the Peerage with immediate effect. Letters Patent under the Great Seal of the Realm dated November 3, 2025, declared that Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor would no longer be entitled to hold the style "Royal Highness" or the titular dignity of "Prince." The actions were effected through the royal prerogative and published in the London Gazette by the Crown Office, rather than through Parliament.[^26][^27]
|
||||
|
||||
The House of Commons Library noted that removal from the Roll of the Peerage and the withdrawal of the style and dignity by Letters Patent are distinct from abolishing the Dukedom of York itself, which is a hereditary peerage that can be removed only by an Act of Parliament. Andrew's daughters, Princess Beatrice and [[Princess Eugenie|Princess Eugenie]], retained their princess styles, conferred under a separate 1917 Letters Patent. The Palace announced Andrew would leave [[Royal Lodge|Royal Lodge]], his 30-room residence in Windsor Great Park held under a long lease, and relocate to privately funded accommodation on the [[Sandringham|Sandringham]] estate in Norfolk. He continued to deny the allegations throughout.[^21][^22]
|
||||
The House of Commons Library noted that removal from the Roll of the Peerage and the withdrawal of the style and dignity by Letters Patent are distinct from abolishing the Dukedom of York itself, which is a hereditary peerage that can be removed only by an Act of Parliament. Andrew's daughters, Princess Beatrice and [[Princess Eugenie|Princess Eugenie]], retained their princess styles, conferred under a separate 1917 Letters Patent. The Palace announced Andrew would leave [[Royal Lodge|Royal Lodge]], his 30-room residence in Windsor Great Park held under a long lease, and relocate to privately funded accommodation on the [[Sandringham|Sandringham]] estate in Norfolk. He continued to deny the allegations throughout.[^26][^27]
|
||||
|
||||
### The 2026 Arrest
|
||||
|
||||
After the [[United States Department of Justice|Justice Department]]'s January 2026 release of [[Epstein Files|Epstein files]] under the [[Epstein Files Transparency Act]], [[Thames Valley Police]] said it was examining allegations that Andrew had sent confidential trade reports to Epstein during his time as the United Kingdom's trade envoy. On February 19, 2026, his sixty-sixth birthday, the force arrested "a man in his sixties from Norfolk" on "suspicion of misconduct in public office" and searched addresses in [[Berkshire]] and [[Norfolk]]. Assistant Chief Constable [[Oliver Wright]] said: "Following a thorough assessment, we have now opened an investigation into this allegation of misconduct in public office." Andrew was released that evening and remained under investigation. King Charles III, confirming that the arrested man was his brother, said: "Let me state clearly: the law must take its course." Andrew did not respond to requests for comment; he has previously denied any wrongdoing relating to Epstein.[^23] Four days later the Metropolitan Police arrested Peter Mandelson on suspicion of the same offense, over messages suggesting he had passed government information to Epstein while business secretary in 2009 and 2010.[^5]
|
||||
After the [[United States Department of Justice|Justice Department]]'s January 2026 release of [[Epstein Files|Epstein files]] under the [[Epstein Files Transparency Act]], [[Thames Valley Police]] said it was examining allegations that Andrew had sent confidential trade reports to Epstein during his time as the United Kingdom's trade envoy. On February 19, 2026, his sixty-sixth birthday, the force arrested "a man in his sixties from Norfolk" on "suspicion of misconduct in public office" and searched addresses in [[Berkshire]] and [[Norfolk]]. Assistant Chief Constable [[Oliver Wright]] said: "Following a thorough assessment, we have now opened an investigation into this allegation of misconduct in public office." Andrew was released that evening and remained under investigation. King Charles III, confirming that the arrested man was his brother, said: "Let me state clearly: the law must take its course." Andrew did not respond to requests for comment; he has previously denied any wrongdoing relating to Epstein.[^28] Four days later the Metropolitan Police arrested Peter Mandelson on suspicion of the same offense, over messages suggesting he had passed government information to Epstein while business secretary in 2009 and 2010.[^10]
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
@ -113,23 +137,28 @@ After the [[United States Department of Justice|Justice Department]]'s January 2
|
|||
[^1]: "How Prince Andrew's relationship with Jeffrey Epstein unraveled," reporting compiled by *AOL* and *BBC,* 2019-2025. https://feeds.bbci.co.uk/news/av/uk-68741324
|
||||
[^2]: "Prince Andrew settles with Virginia Giuffre in sexual abuse lawsuit," *WUSF / NPR,* February 15, 2022. https://www.wusf.org/2022-02-15/prince-andrew-settles-with-virginia-giuffre-in-sexual-abuse-lawsuit
|
||||
[^3]: U.S. Department of Justice, Epstein Library, EFTA02411832, DataSet 11, email chain between Peggy Siegal and George Stephanopoulos, "Thursday small dinner for Prince Andrew," December 1-3, 2010. https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%2011/EFTA02411832.pdf
|
||||
[^4]: U.S. Department of Justice, Epstein Library, EFTA02808715, Court Records, Government of the United States Virgin Islands v. JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., No. 22-cv-10904 (S.D.N.Y.), letter motion to Judge Jed S. Rakoff seeking leave to reopen depositions, June 7, 2023, p. 3. https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/Court%20Records/Government%20of%20the%20United%20States%20Virgin%20Islands%20v.%20JPMorgan%20Chase%20Bank%2C%20N.A.%2C%20No.%20122-cv-10904%20(S.D.N.Y.%202022)/EFTA02808715.pdf
|
||||
[^5]: "British police arrest former ambassador to the U.S. Peter Mandelson in probe into Epstein ties." *Associated Press,* via *PBS NewsHour,* February 23, 2026. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/british-police-arrest-former-ambassador-to-the-u-s-peter-mandelson-in-probe-into-epstein-ties
|
||||
[^6]: "Dubai-based DP World replaces chief named in Epstein files." *Al Jazeera,* February 13, 2026. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/2/13/logistics-giant-dp-world-replaces-chief-named-in-epstein-files
|
||||
[^7]: U.S. Department of Justice, Epstein Library, EFTA00699038, DataSet 9, email to jeevacation@gmail.com, sender redacted, January 6, 2015. https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%209/EFTA00699038.pdf
|
||||
[^8]: U.S. Department of Justice, Epstein Library, EFTA00149598, DataSet 9, internal FBI New York email chain, "Fwd: FW: Prince Andrew," June 8, 2020. https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%209/EFTA00149598.pdf
|
||||
[^9]: "Photograph of Prince Andrew, Virginia Giuffre and Ghislaine Maxwell," reporting on the March 2001 image, *The Mirror US,* 2025. https://www.themirror.com/news/us-news/uncropped-prince-andrew-photo-mystery-1575570
|
||||
[^10]: Adriana Gallardo and Leila Fadel, report on Virginia Roberts Giuffre's memoir *Nobody's Girl*, *NPR,* October 20, 2025 (updated October 23, 2025). https://www.npr.org/2025/10/20/nx-s1-5514834/epstein-accuser-virginia-roberts-giuffre-nobodys-girl-memoir
|
||||
[^11]: "Inside Prince Andrew's explosive Newsnight interview," *Hello,* recounting the November 2019 BBC Newsnight interview with Emily Maitlis. https://www.hellomagazine.com/royalty/864943/princes-andrew-newsnight-most-notable-moments/
|
||||
[^12]: "Details on Prince Andrew allegations emerge from new Jeffrey Epstein documents, but no U.K. police investigation," *CBS News,* January 5, 2024. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/prince-andrew-allegations-jeffrey-epstein-documents-no-uk-police-investigation/
|
||||
[^13]: "Jeffrey Epstein's Alleged Accomplices: Where Are Sarah Kellen, Nadia Marcinkova, Adriana Ross and Lesley Groff?," *The Daily Beast.* https://www.thedailybeast.com/jeffrey-epsteins-alleged-accomplices-where-are-sarah-kellen-nadia-marcinkova-adriana-ross-and-lesley-groff/
|
||||
[^14]: "Lawyers say settlement reached in Virginia Giuffre's lawsuit against Prince Andrew," *PBS NewsHour,* February 15, 2022. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/lawyers-say-settlement-reached-in-virginia-giuffres-lawsuit-against-prince-andrew
|
||||
[^15]: Settlement Agreement and General Release, Jane Doe No. 102 v. Jeffrey Epstein, No. 09-80656-CIV-Marra/Johnson (S.D. Fla.), filed as Exhibit A, ECF No. 32-1, in Giuffre v. Prince Andrew, No. 1:21-cv-06702 (S.D.N.Y.), and the subject of Prince Andrew's Request for Judicial Notice, ECF No. 35 (Oct. 29, 2021). https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.nysd.564713/gov.uscourts.nysd.564713.32.1.pdf
|
||||
[^16]: Giuffre v. Prince Andrew, No. 1:21-cv-06702-LAK (S.D.N.Y.), Order, ECF No. 57 (Dec. 16, 2021); Order, ECF No. 61 (Dec. 31, 2021); Opinion re Motion to Dismiss, ECF No. 64 (signed Jan. 11, 2022, filed Jan. 12, 2022); Stipulation and Order of Dismissal, ECF No. 83 (March 8, 2022). https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/60119368/giuffre-v-prince-andrew/
|
||||
[^17]: "Prince Andrew loses bid to dismiss lawsuit by Jeffrey Epstein accuser Virginia Giuffre," *CNBC,* January 12, 2022 (Kaplan ruling on the 2009 release). https://www.cnbc.com/2022/01/12/judge-rejects-prince-andrews-bid-to-dismiss-epstein-accuser-virginia-giuffres-lawsuit.html
|
||||
[^18]: "Prince Andrew is stripped of his royal patronages and military titles," *NPR,* January 13, 2022. https://www.npr.org/2022/01/13/1072779687/prince-andrew-royal-privileges-queen
|
||||
[^19]: "Legal battle begins over Virginia Giuffre's multi-million-dollar estate," *ABC News (Australia),* November 28, 2025. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-11-28/virginia-giuffre-epstein-survivor-legal-battle-over-estate/106075194
|
||||
[^20]: "Prince Andrew to give up Duke of York title and honors amid Jeffrey Epstein developments," *NBC News,* October 17, 2025. https://www.nbcnews.com/world/united-kingdom/prince-andrew-give-duke-york-title-honors-jeffrey-epstein-developments-rcna238242
|
||||
[^21]: "King Charles formally removes Andrew's prince title and HRH style after Epstein scandal," *AOL,* November 2025. https://www.aol.com/articles/king-charles-formally-removes-andrew-150223876.html
|
||||
[^22]: House of Commons Library, "The removal of titles and honours," CBP-10370, 2025. https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-10370/
|
||||
[^23]: Frayer, Lauren, and Leila Fadel. "U.K.'s ex-Prince Andrew is released after his arrest over Epstein revelations." *NPR,* February 19, 2026. https://www.npr.org/2026/02/19/nx-s1-5719098/andrew-mountbatten-windsor-arrested-on-suspicion-of-misconduct-in-public-office
|
||||
[^4]: U.S. Department of Justice, Epstein Library, EFTA00873540 and EFTA00873541, DataSet 9, emails of July 10, 2013 (16:12 and 16:35 UTC). https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%209/EFTA00873540.pdf ; https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%209/EFTA00873541.pdf
|
||||
[^5]: Companies House, "URRAMOOR LIMITED," company number 08424933, persons with significant control. https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/08424933/persons-with-significant-control ; U.S. Department of Justice, Epstein Library, EFTA02573653 to EFTA02573656, DataSet 11, "Re: HL Loan - CD/SM call note 8.8.13," August 9, 2013, quoted with the line-break characters of the text layer omitted. https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%2011/EFTA02573653.pdf
|
||||
[^6]: U.S. Department of Justice, Epstein Library, EFTA01107738, DataSet 9, "Term Sheet (8/29/13 Preliminary Draft for Discussion Purposes Only)"; EFTA01958492, EFTA01958705, EFTA01958916, EFTA01958960 and EFTA01959027, DataSet 10, thread "Term Sheet from Cantor Fitzgerald to Mr. T," September 2, 2013. https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%209/EFTA01107738.pdf ; https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%2010/EFTA01958492.pdf ; https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%2010/EFTA01958916.pdf
|
||||
[^7]: U.S. Department of Justice, Epstein Library, EFTA01141453 to EFTA01141460, DataSet 9, "Agreement for Referrals" (draft), Exhibit B; EFTA01949796 and EFTA01949827, DataSet 10, emails of November 16, 2013. https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%209/EFTA01141453.pdf ; https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%2010/EFTA01949827.pdf
|
||||
[^8]: Verity, Andy, Rob Byrne and Ben Milne. "How US commerce secretary's Epstein links were uncovered by British whistleblower." *BBC News,* July 14, 2026. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c9q28dlyxrzo
|
||||
[^9]: U.S. Department of Justice, Epstein Library, EFTA02808715, Court Records, Government of the United States Virgin Islands v. JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., No. 22-cv-10904 (S.D.N.Y.), letter motion to Judge Jed S. Rakoff seeking leave to reopen depositions, June 7, 2023, p. 3. https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/Court%20Records/Government%20of%20the%20United%20States%20Virgin%20Islands%20v.%20JPMorgan%20Chase%20Bank%2C%20N.A.%2C%20No.%20122-cv-10904%20(S.D.N.Y.%202022)/EFTA02808715.pdf
|
||||
[^10]: "British police arrest former ambassador to the U.S. Peter Mandelson in probe into Epstein ties." *Associated Press,* via *PBS NewsHour,* February 23, 2026. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/british-police-arrest-former-ambassador-to-the-u-s-peter-mandelson-in-probe-into-epstein-ties
|
||||
[^11]: "Dubai-based DP World replaces chief named in Epstein files." *Al Jazeera,* February 13, 2026. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/2/13/logistics-giant-dp-world-replaces-chief-named-in-epstein-files
|
||||
[^12]: U.S. Department of Justice, Epstein Library, EFTA00699038, DataSet 9, email to jeevacation@gmail.com, sender redacted, January 6, 2015. https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%209/EFTA00699038.pdf
|
||||
[^13]: U.S. Department of Justice, Epstein Library, EFTA00149598, DataSet 9, internal FBI New York email chain, "Fwd: FW: Prince Andrew," June 8, 2020. https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%209/EFTA00149598.pdf
|
||||
[^14]: "Photograph of Prince Andrew, Virginia Giuffre and Ghislaine Maxwell," reporting on the March 2001 image, *The Mirror US,* 2025. https://www.themirror.com/news/us-news/uncropped-prince-andrew-photo-mystery-1575570
|
||||
[^15]: Adriana Gallardo and Leila Fadel, report on Virginia Roberts Giuffre's memoir *Nobody's Girl*, *NPR,* October 20, 2025 (updated October 23, 2025). https://www.npr.org/2025/10/20/nx-s1-5514834/epstein-accuser-virginia-roberts-giuffre-nobodys-girl-memoir
|
||||
[^16]: "Inside Prince Andrew's explosive Newsnight interview," *Hello,* recounting the November 2019 BBC Newsnight interview with Emily Maitlis. https://www.hellomagazine.com/royalty/864943/princes-andrew-newsnight-most-notable-moments/
|
||||
[^17]: "Details on Prince Andrew allegations emerge from new Jeffrey Epstein documents, but no U.K. police investigation," *CBS News,* January 5, 2024. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/prince-andrew-allegations-jeffrey-epstein-documents-no-uk-police-investigation/
|
||||
[^18]: "Jeffrey Epstein's Alleged Accomplices: Where Are Sarah Kellen, Nadia Marcinkova, Adriana Ross and Lesley Groff?," *The Daily Beast.* https://www.thedailybeast.com/jeffrey-epsteins-alleged-accomplices-where-are-sarah-kellen-nadia-marcinkova-adriana-ross-and-lesley-groff/
|
||||
[^19]: "Lawyers say settlement reached in Virginia Giuffre's lawsuit against Prince Andrew," *PBS NewsHour,* February 15, 2022. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/lawyers-say-settlement-reached-in-virginia-giuffres-lawsuit-against-prince-andrew
|
||||
[^20]: Settlement Agreement and General Release, Jane Doe No. 102 v. Jeffrey Epstein, No. 09-80656-CIV-Marra/Johnson (S.D. Fla.), filed as Exhibit A, ECF No. 32-1, in Giuffre v. Prince Andrew, No. 1:21-cv-06702 (S.D.N.Y.), and the subject of Prince Andrew's Request for Judicial Notice, ECF No. 35 (Oct. 29, 2021). https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.nysd.564713/gov.uscourts.nysd.564713.32.1.pdf
|
||||
[^21]: Giuffre v. Prince Andrew, No. 1:21-cv-06702-LAK (S.D.N.Y.), Order, ECF No. 57 (Dec. 16, 2021); Order, ECF No. 61 (Dec. 31, 2021); Opinion re Motion to Dismiss, ECF No. 64 (signed Jan. 11, 2022, filed Jan. 12, 2022); Stipulation and Order of Dismissal, ECF No. 83 (March 8, 2022). https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/60119368/giuffre-v-prince-andrew/
|
||||
[^22]: "Prince Andrew loses bid to dismiss lawsuit by Jeffrey Epstein accuser Virginia Giuffre," *CNBC,* January 12, 2022 (Kaplan ruling on the 2009 release). https://www.cnbc.com/2022/01/12/judge-rejects-prince-andrews-bid-to-dismiss-epstein-accuser-virginia-giuffres-lawsuit.html
|
||||
[^23]: "Prince Andrew is stripped of his royal patronages and military titles," *NPR,* January 13, 2022. https://www.npr.org/2022/01/13/1072779687/prince-andrew-royal-privileges-queen
|
||||
[^24]: "Legal battle begins over Virginia Giuffre's multi-million-dollar estate," *ABC News (Australia),* November 28, 2025. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-11-28/virginia-giuffre-epstein-survivor-legal-battle-over-estate/106075194
|
||||
[^25]: "Prince Andrew to give up Duke of York title and honors amid Jeffrey Epstein developments," *NBC News,* October 17, 2025. https://www.nbcnews.com/world/united-kingdom/prince-andrew-give-duke-york-title-honors-jeffrey-epstein-developments-rcna238242
|
||||
[^26]: "King Charles formally removes Andrew's prince title and HRH style after Epstein scandal," *AOL,* November 2025. https://www.aol.com/articles/king-charles-formally-removes-andrew-150223876.html
|
||||
[^27]: House of Commons Library, "The removal of titles and honours," CBP-10370, 2025. https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-10370/
|
||||
[^28]: Frayer, Lauren, and Leila Fadel. "U.K.'s ex-Prince Andrew is released after his arrest over Epstein revelations." *NPR,* February 19, 2026. https://www.npr.org/2026/02/19/nx-s1-5719098/andrew-mountbatten-windsor-arrested-on-suspicion-of-misconduct-in-public-office
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
114
10 - PEOPLE/(A-G)/Simon Andriesz.md
Normal file
114
10 - PEOPLE/(A-G)/Simon Andriesz.md
Normal file
|
|
@ -0,0 +1,114 @@
|
|||
---
|
||||
category: "Business & Finance"
|
||||
tags:
|
||||
- Person
|
||||
- SimonAndriesz
|
||||
- Whistleblower
|
||||
- BGC
|
||||
- CantorFitzgerald
|
||||
- HowardLutnick
|
||||
- JeffreyEpstein
|
||||
- FBI
|
||||
- CFTC
|
||||
- EpsteinFiles
|
||||
alias:
|
||||
- Simon Andriesz
|
||||
summary: "Simon Andriesz was a British former BGC managing director whose October 14, 2020 call to the FBI about Howard Lutnick appears in the Epstein files and whose death The Banker reported on October 2, 2026."
|
||||
location: "Cornwall, England"
|
||||
relations:
|
||||
- type: employed_by
|
||||
with: "[[BGC Group]]"
|
||||
end: 2017
|
||||
role: "described by the BBC as a managing director until his dismissal in 2017; in the FBI complaint form, responsible for reviewing, reporting and compliance for all of North America"
|
||||
fn: 5
|
||||
- type: reported_to
|
||||
with: "[[Federal Bureau of Investigation]]"
|
||||
start: 2020-10-14
|
||||
role: "National Threat Operations Center telephone complaint alleging money laundering by Howard Lutnick via BGC Financial and Cantor Fitzgerald (Guardian 681124 NY)"
|
||||
fn: 2
|
||||
- type: reported
|
||||
with: "[[Howard Lutnick]]"
|
||||
start: 2020-10-14
|
||||
role: "allegations of fraud, money laundering and Ponzi schemes made in the FBI complaint; denied by BGC as 'categorically false'"
|
||||
fn: 2
|
||||
- type: named_in
|
||||
with: "[[Federal Bureau of Investigation]]"
|
||||
start: 2021-02-16
|
||||
role: 'FD-302 (50D-NY-3027571, serial 593) of a telephone interview of February 16, 2021; the interviewee's name is redacted throughout and the surname "ANDREISZ" appears once, in a passage on charity-day trading'
|
||||
fn: 11
|
||||
- type: informed
|
||||
with: "[[House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform]]"
|
||||
start: 2026
|
||||
role: "gave members documents from the released Epstein files before Lutnick's May 2026 interview, according to the BBC"
|
||||
fn: 3
|
||||
- type: spoke_at
|
||||
with: "[[Transparency Task Force]]"
|
||||
start: 2026-07-21
|
||||
role: "online event on the Financial Conduct Authority and whistleblower protection"
|
||||
fn: 6
|
||||
created: 2026-10-04
|
||||
updated: 2026-10-04
|
||||
---
|
||||
|
||||
Simon Andriesz was a British financial-markets professional who worked for [[BGC Group]] (called BGC Partners in the BBC's account), part of the [[Cantor Fitzgerald]] group, and who told the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation]] in October 2020, according to an FBI complaint form, that he believed he had supporting documents which could link the firms' chief executive, [[Howard Lutnick]], to [[Jeffrey Epstein]] and [[Ghislaine Maxwell]]. In July 2026 he told the [[BBC]] that he had found a 2018 email exchange between Epstein and an address labeled "HWL" about the company [[AdFin Solutions]]. [[The Banker]] reported on October 2, 2026 that he had died at the age of 57.[^1][^2][^3][^4]
|
||||
|
||||
### Career as described by named sources
|
||||
|
||||
The Banker described him as a "former British banker" who "spent more than 35 years working in financial markets" and who "was previously a managing director at Wall Street firm BGC Group where Lutnick, now the US commerce secretary, was chief executive officer."[^1] The BBC wrote that he was "previously a managing director at a Wall Street firm," that he worked for "BGC Partners," that in 2016 he "had raised concerns internally about accounting irregularities at the firm," and that he "was sacked in 2017." The BBC reported that he lived in a Cornish seaside village.[^5] The [[Transparency Task Force]] wrote that he "spent 35 years in the securities industry."[^6] A compilation of FBI Guardian complaints records "Andriesz, calling from the United Kingdom, previously worked for BGC Financial (BGC) and Can[tor Fitzgerald]," and the FBI complaint form of 2021 records the caller as "responsible for reviewing, reporting, and compliance for all of North America."[^2][^7]
|
||||
|
||||
BGC told the BBC that his allegations "lacked credibility" and were "categorically false," that the claims had been investigated by authorities in several jurisdictions which, according to BGC, had not substantiated them, that it "denies retaliating against Andriesz," and that it has had no involvement with him since his departure other than responding to litigation he initiated. The BBC reported that BGC "maintains Andriesz's employment was terminated after he refused to follow medical advice, declined to perform essential job duties, rejected reasonable accommodation, and ultimately abandoned his role."[^5]
|
||||
|
||||
### The CFTC order of November 2019
|
||||
|
||||
On November 22, 2019 the [[Commodity Futures Trading Commission]] announced in release 8083-19 an order requiring BGC Financial, L.P. to pay a $3 million civil monetary penalty "for numerous supervision, reporting, and recordkeeping violations spanning over five years." The order finds that from at least 2014 to March 2019 BGC "failed to establish an adequate supervisory system," including failures to follow its policies on brokers' use of personal cell phones, that in 2016 BGC "lost nearly four months of voice recordings for thousands of brokered block trades," that it did not adequately disclose recordkeeping noncompliance in its 2015 and 2016 chief compliance officer reports, and that it did not notify the commission of a [[Securities and Exchange Commission]] investigation until "more than four years after BGC was aware of it and only after a $1.25 million settlement was reached."[^8]
|
||||
|
||||
The release does not name a whistleblower. The BBC wrote that "some of his allegations later led to BGC being ordered to pay a $3m (£2.24m) penalty by the US derivatives regulator for 'numerous supervision, reporting, and record-keeping violations,'" and that he won "a financial award of $420,000 (£313,000) for his whistleblowing from the US regulator."[^5] The Transparency Task Force wrote that the commission "made him a formal whistleblower award and, in a separate enforcement action, imposed a $3 million sanction on the firm."[^6]
|
||||
|
||||
### The October 14, 2020 FBI complaint
|
||||
|
||||
At 9:16:24 a.m. Eastern Time on October 14, 2020 a caller telephoned the FBI's [[National Threat Operations Center]] to report "alleged money laundering by Howard Lutnick via BGC Financial and Cantor Fitzgerald." The FBI recorded the call on an FD-71A Guardian complaint form dated April 23, 2021 (Guardian 681124 NY), filed under a money-laundering zero file and case 50D-NY-3027571, "EPSTEIN, JEFFREY; CHILD SEX TRAFFICKING." The caller's name is redacted in that document, which was released by the [[United States Department of Justice]] as EFTA01249210.[^2] The name "Simon Andriesz" appears in a separate release, EFTA01684300, a printout of Guardian complaints, in the line giving the call time and in the fragments "Andriesz, calling from the United Kingdom, previously worked for BGC Financial (BGC) and Can[tor Fitzgerald]" and "Andriesz uncovered fraud, money laundering, Ponzi schemes, and regulat[ory breaches]."[^7]
|
||||
|
||||
The form records the caller as saying that he "uncovered fraud, money laundering, Ponzi schemes, and regulatory breaches" by BGC and Cantor Fitzgerald, "so he became a whistleblower," and that BGC and Cantor Fitzgerald "received large fines and there are 'live cases' still occurring in the United Kingdom." It records his statements that Lutnick was using a "global Ponzi share" scheme "involving over 3,500 BGC employees who are forced to contribute 10% of their earnings," that Lutnick was "deeply rooted to the royal family," that he used his charities as a "smokescreen," that he "believes he has supporting documents which could link Lutnick to Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell," and that "Epstein also sold Lutnick a house for $10 dollars through a trust fund, which was then sold for millions shortly after prior to the money going overseas." The caller "stated he has multiple regulatory reporting documents he can provide to an agent to substantiate his claims." The form records database queries on Lutnick ("26 results in the NY division case files," including a restricted closed money-laundering case) and the note "Queries were not conducted on Epstein and Maxwell due to the sensitive nature of the case."[^2] The BBC wrote that "the FBI did not investigate these accusations."[^5]
|
||||
|
||||
An email dated July 24, 2025, in a chain titled "Epstein - Cellmate Interview," lists under the heading "Howard Lutnick": "Simon Andriesz reported that Lutnick made his money through Ponzi schemes and money laundering. Lutnick and Epstein were neighbors and Epstein sold Lutnick a home for $10 which was then sold for millions." The same entry appears in three further released documents, EFTA01648951, EFTA01656173 and EFTA01660622.[^9]
|
||||
|
||||
A second FBI intake form, marked "UNCLASSIFIED" and dated October 19, 2020 (five days after the call of October 14), bears the same case ID, 50D-NY-3027571, and the caption "(U) EPSTEIN, JEFFREY; CHILD SEX TRAFFICKING." It records the time of a call to the National Threat Operations Center as 11:43 AM Eastern Time. The name of the person who called is redacted. The form records that the person "acted as an internal whistleblower after witnessing some financial irregularities," that he "has documentation he is willing to provide to the FBI," that he "claims that Cantor Fitzgerald retaliated against him after he was a whistleblower," and that he "has also submitted this documentation to the [[Internal Revenue Service]]." It states that he "believes some of the suspicious financial activities could be related to Epstein's case."[^10]
|
||||
|
||||
An FD-302 in case 50D-NY-3027571 (serial 593) records a telephone interview on February 16, 2021, entered April 5, 2021 and drafted March 17, 2021, with an interviewee whose name is redacted throughout. It records that he "had been in the securities business for 32 years," that he "was at" a redacted firm "from 2012 to 2017," and that he "held a Series 30 license," and refers to "the fraud allegations [redacted] made in his initial complaint to the FBI." The one place where a surname appears is a sentence on the second page, in a passage on the firm's charity day: "ANDREISZ advised the day of the charity day trading would shift if the publicized day was not a successful trading day." The third page records that the interviewee "was working with the COMMODITY FUTURES TRADING COMMISSION (CFTC) and he was eligible for their whistleblower program," and an agent note that after the interview a redacted name "contacted SA [redacted] telephonically asked if he could provide her contact information to the CFTC." The first page carries the legend "This document contains neither recommendations nor conclusions of the FBI." Each page carries the legend "SUBJECT TO PROTECTIVE ORDER PARAGRAPHS 7, 8, 9, 10, 15, and 17."[^11]
|
||||
|
||||
An FBI email of January 30, 2025, sent under the subject "RE: Expedite ARMS Reach - Howard William Lutnick" (followed in the subject line by the classification suffix "UNCLASSIFIED") and marked "Classification: UNCLASSIFIED" and "Transitory," in reply to a vetting request from the Enterprise Vetting Center concerning Howard Lutnick, states: "This was an intake interview related to the Guardian in serial 196 where HOWARD LUTNICK was accused of fraud and money laundering. We did not open an investigation as a result of these allegations." The email does not name the person who made the accusation.[^12]
|
||||
|
||||
At the House Oversight interview of May 6, 2026, a questioner said the committee understood "through public reporting and records, that an Epstein-affiliated trust had owned that townhome that you moved into prior to you" and asked whether Epstein had any role in the sale. Lutnick answered: "No. I bought my townhouse from someone ... who owned it. So Epstein did not own the house. So I don't know what that's in reference to."[^13]
|
||||
|
||||
### The BBC reporting of July 14, 2026
|
||||
|
||||
The BBC published a report by Andy Verity, Rob Byrne and Ben Milne on July 14, 2026, the day [[BBC Radio 4]]'s [[File on 4|File on 4 Investigates]] broadcast an episode titled "[[Epstein Files]]: Lutnick, the Royals and the British Whistleblower." The BBC wrote that Andriesz "discovered an email chain from 2018 in which Lutnick and Epstein had discussed the prospects of a start-up business they were both involved in." Andriesz said, "Everyone was searching 'Lutnick'"; the BBC wrote that he knew Cantor Fitzgerald executives preferred initials, searched for "HWL" and found the exchange in which Epstein asked the HWL account "what do you think the prospects for adfin are?" and the reply read "Producing revenue finally. This is their year." Andriesz gave the finding to members of the [[House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform|House Oversight Committee]] before Lutnick's May 2026 interview. The BBC reported that Lutnick told the committee that, to the best of his knowledge, he learned only in 2026 that Epstein had been an investor in the firm.[^3] The exchange is EFTA01050772.[^14]
|
||||
|
||||
The BBC also reported that Andriesz found in the files that one of Lutnick's firms had made plans in 2013 to go into business with the then Prince Andrew, [[Prince Andrew|Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor]]. Andriesz told File on 4 Investigates: "What it involved was a loan to Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor of £1m... to basically buy a prince." The BBC wrote that under the proposed terms £1 million would be loaned to a firm controlled by the prince, "which would then be bound to do business exclusively with Cantor Fitzgerald," that advisers to both Lutnick and the former prince discussed the deal from August to November 2013, that Epstein warned the prince's business aide [[David Stern]] against it, and that it "came to nothing." Cantor Fitzgerald "did not deny the talks took place but told the BBC it did not go into business with the former prince."[^3]
|
||||
|
||||
The BBC reported the [[United States Department of Commerce|Commerce Department]]'s response that the allegations were "a desperate partisan distraction from the historic work of this Administration" with "no evidence of wrongdoing or legitimate cause for concern," and a [[White House]] statement on behalf of Lutnick: "The BBC's pathetic and desperate attempt to slander Secretary Lutnick will do nothing to change the fact that he has been the most consequential Commerce Secretary in modern history." It quoted Andriesz: "I'm exposing Howard Lutnick's relationship, financial links, with Jeffrey Epstein, and there's no interest."[^3]
|
||||
|
||||
### The Transparency Task Force event
|
||||
|
||||
The Transparency Task Force, a [[United Kingdom]] campaign group founded by [[Andy Agathangelou]], held an online event on July 21, 2026 titled "The Simon Andriesz Story; and the Role of the Financial Conduct Authority." Its announcement said he would "speak publicly for the first time about the Financial Conduct Authority's alleged failure to protect him from retaliation," and quoted him: "when I repeatedly warned the FCA, including through direct written appeals to Chief Executive [[Nikhil Rathi]] and senior enforcement leaders [[Steve Smart]] and [[Therese Chambers]], that the retaliation was escalating and that my family and I were in crisis, it took no effective action to protect me." The announcement stated that his FBI file was "now public as part of the January 2026 release under the [[Epstein Files Transparency Act]]," that [[HM Revenue and Customs]] "issued a £96 million determination concerning the same partnership tax arrangements that Mr Andriesz says he had been reporting since 2017," that the [[Financial Conduct Authority]]'s response was "a Supervision Order," and that an FCA official had told him he had lost whistleblower protection, advice the announcement says the FCA later accepted was wrong and apologised for.[^6]
|
||||
|
||||
### Death
|
||||
|
||||
The Banker published on October 2, 2026 an article by Chris Newlands headed "Whistleblower who flagged Lutnick's links to Epstein dies," which stated that Andriesz "has died by suicide," that he was 57, and that his death "was confirmed by Andy Agathangelou, the founder of campaign group Transparency Task Force." Agathangelou was quoted: "It is with great sadness that we share the news that Simon Andriesz, a valued member of our community, passed away last week." The article repeated the BBC's account of the 2018 email chain and Lutnick's statement that "I unequivocally condemn the conduct attributed to Jeffrey Epstein and everyone who participated in his illegal activities."[^1][^4]
|
||||
|
||||
### Footnotes
|
||||
|
||||
[^1]: Chris Newlands, "Whistleblower who flagged Lutnick's links to Epstein dies," *The Banker,* October 2, 2026. https://www.thebanker.com/content/02286d53-0338-42ef-996d-5f7712b9f133
|
||||
[^2]: U.S. Department of Justice, Epstein Library, EFTA01249210, DataSet 9, FBI FD-71A Guardian Complaint Form, "Alleged Money Laundering by Howard Lutnick via BGC Financial and Cantor Fitzgerald," April 23, 2021. https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%209/EFTA01249210.pdf
|
||||
[^3]: Verity, Byrne and Milne, *BBC News,* July 14, 2026; BBC Radio 4, "Epstein Files: Lutnick, the Royals and the British Whistleblower," File on 4 Investigates, July 14, 2026. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c9q28dlyxrzo ; https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m002yx47
|
||||
[^4]: Newlands, *The Banker,* October 2, 2026.
|
||||
[^5]: Andy Verity, Rob Byrne and Ben Milne, "How US commerce secretary's Epstein links were uncovered by British whistleblower," *BBC News,* July 14, 2026. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c9q28dlyxrzo
|
||||
[^6]: Transparency Task Force, "The Simon Andriesz Story; and the Role of the Financial Conduct Authority," event of July 21, 2026. https://transparencytaskforce.org/the-simon-andriesz-story-and-the-role-of-the-financial-conduct-authority/
|
||||
[^7]: U.S. Department of Justice, Epstein Library, EFTA01684300, DataSet 10, compilation of FBI Guardian complaints, pages EFTA01684332, EFTA01684377, EFTA01684392, EFTA01684407 and EFTA01684422. https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%2010/EFTA01684300.pdf
|
||||
[^8]: U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, release 8083-19, "CFTC Orders BGC Financial, L.P. to Pay $3 Million for Supervision, Reporting, and Recordkeeping Violations," November 22, 2019. https://www.cftc.gov/PressRoom/PressReleases/8083-19
|
||||
[^9]: U.S. Department of Justice, Epstein Library, EFTA01648946 (page 2), DataSet 10, email of July 24, 2025, "Epstein - Cellmate Interview"; EFTA01648951, EFTA01656173 and EFTA01660622, DataSet 10. https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%2010/EFTA01648946.pdf ; https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%2010/EFTA01648951.pdf ; https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%2010/EFTA01656173.pdf ; https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%2010/EFTA01660622.pdf
|
||||
[^10]: U.S. Department of Justice, Epstein Library, EFTA01249205, DataSet 9, FBI Intake, October 19, 2020. https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%209/EFTA01249205.pdf
|
||||
[^11]: U.S. Department of Justice, Epstein Library, EFTA01249207, DataSet 9, FD-302, 50D-NY-3027571 Serial 593, interview of February 16, 2021 (pages EFTA01249207 to EFTA01249209). https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%209/EFTA01249207.pdf
|
||||
[^12]: U.S. Department of Justice, Epstein Library, EFTA00173881, DataSet 9, email chain "Expedite ARMS Reach - Howard William Lutnick," January 30, 2025. https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%209/EFTA00173881.pdf
|
||||
[^13]: U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, transcribed interview of Howard Lutnick, May 6, 2026, p. 30. https://oversight.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/Lutnick-Transcript.pdf
|
||||
[^14]: U.S. Department of Justice, Epstein Library, EFTA01050772, DataSet 9, email chain "Re: thanks for letting me know," May 28, 2018. https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%209/EFTA01050772.pdf
|
||||
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