BCCI-Linked Firm Fined

A federal judge has fined a London trading company linked to the BCCI scandal for failing to respond to an indictment.

U.S. District Judge William J. Castagna in Tampa on Thursday fined Capcom Financial Services Ltd. $5,000 for each day it fails to answer the court’s summons to appear.

Capcom was founded by former Bank of Credit & Commerce International treasurer S.Z.A. Akbar. The company, Akbar and five other top BCCI executives were indicted here last September on racketeering and conspiracy charges, accused of creating a corporate strategy to use BCCI to launder money for drug dealers.

As part of the indictment, Capcom is accused of helping hide and transfer some of the $23 million in drug payoffs to former Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega held in BCCI banks. Noriega was convicted of drug conspiracy charges last month in Miami.

Akbar was arrested by French authorities the same month as the indictment and has been fighting extradition to Tampa.

Federal officials served Capcom’s sister company in Chicago with a summons to appear seven months ago, and an office agent said she forwarded the summons to Capcom’s corporate officers in London.