Former CFO guilty of $125m Grenada bank fraud

PORTLAND, OREGON – The former chief financial officer and director of the First International Bank of Grenada pleaded guilty in the US in late July as a conspirator in an investment fraud that took in more than $125 million, according to press reports and the Internal Revenue Service.

Rita Regale, also known as Rita Brunges, faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, a fine of $250,000 and a three-year term of supervised release for conspiring to commit money laundering.

Regale worked in the roles for the bank between October 1997 and April 2000.

Gilbert Ziegler, founding chairman and CEO of the bank, was indicted in January 2004 for fraud and money laundering related to the scam. He died of a heart attack in December 2005 after fleeing to Uganda having been arrested after a shoot-out.

Ziegler and Regale persuaded people to deposit money into the bank by promising annual returns of up to 300%, according to the indictment.

First International Bank of Grenada was taken over by the government of Grenada in August 2000 and the group went into liquidation in January 2001.