- @
- Followers:
No Tweets Found
CNN POLITICS ON FACEBOOK » | CNN POLITICS ON TWITTER »
Who is Rudolf Elmer, WikiLeaks' newest leaker?
On Monday in London, a former Swiss bank executive gave WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange two discs with the names of prominent individuals and companies the executive says are involved in tax evasion and other crimes.
Rudolf Elmer would not say where he obtained the information or which banks were involved. The discs outline wrongdoing by several dozen politicians and "pillars of society," he said. His motivation? He wants to "educate our society," he said. "I know how the system works. ... It's damaging."
Elmer was fired in 2002 from the Julius Baer Group. He ran the bank's Cayman Islands office for eight years. On Wednesday, he will go to trial in Switzerland on charges that he stole bank information. Elmer was reportedly held for a month in 2005, accused of falsifying documents and threatening people at the bank, among other allegations.
Julius Baer released this statement about Elmer: "After his demands (including financial compensation) in connection with the dismissal could not be satisfied, Mr Elmer embarked in 2004 on a personal intimidation campaign and vendetta against Julius Baer. The aim of his activities was and is to discredit Julius Baer as well as clients in the eyes of the public."
In 2008, WikiLeaks published hundreds of pages of secret Julius Baer banking records.
In addition to Elmer, Assange is also facing charges. Assange's sex crime investigation continues to play out in Sweden as he remains out of jail on bail. Assange is due in court in London in early February.
On Twitter
On Twitter
@cnnbrk on Twitter
Its really becoming exciting.
Youcomplete idiots that knock assange should go crawl back under the rock that you come from. It is wonderful that someone is taking initiative for what all Americans are to ignorant to do without someone like assange. Our government has us all separated, stuck to the TV watching jersey shore and award shows, giving trillions of our tax dollars away, and none of us are taking any initiative on banding together " BY THE PEOPLE " "FOR THE PEOPLE" to put a stop to our out of control governement. Blesed be assange keep the freedom alive.
THANK-YOU Wikileaks ! Thanks 4 putting your life on the line for the better of human-kind.
It will become much more interesting once some of these leakers as well as some of the wikileaks guys get assassinated. Until then, there is no consequence to their actions. As we all know, that every action has an equal and opposite reaction. That is when the stuff hits the fan.
have you ever paid too many NSF fees? have you ever been reported to Chexsystems and unable to open a checking account? If you have, then you understand. It's just the simple.
@Doughn:
As an American, I find your sweeping claims that all of us are ignorant television addicts to be biased and narrow-minded. I'm a staunch supporter of Wikileaks and Assange, and I find that your choice to decry me as "ignorant" to be ironic in light of the fact that you can't even determine which "too" (to, two) to use in a sentence. Glass houses and all that.
Very well stated,Doughn. I totally agree with you.
great news
Will the worlds political leaders shut Mr. Assange down now, or will he just engage them with a little Blackmail ?.
Tunisia's tyrannical government collapsed thanks largely to information publicized by Wikileaks. They are the vanguard of freedom.
Really John? I think it actually had more to do with a street fruit vendor setting himself on fire in protest to high taxes than anything on wikileaks. Don't give them more credit than they're due.
Guest is right on this one... http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/africa/01/17/tunisia.self.immolation/index.html?hpt=T2
Pat – I would have to disagree with the article and Guest on this one... Although the guy who set himself on fire was a part of the uprising, I believe Wikileaks helped confirm to the people, what other governments thought of Tunisia. Its pretty sick that the US has supported Ben Ali for the past 20 years and we have given them over $600+ million in MILITARY aid. To suppress his people. Then we want to turn around and claim to be for freedom and democracy. Tunisia won't be the last country to revolt. This is about to get good. I think now that Wikileaks is starting to change the world, you will see the media try to discredit them even more. They aren't going to give Wikileaks credit for Tunisia, but after Egypt, Greece, Brazil, and a few dozen more, its going to be hard to deny what is happening. I don't think the sheep in America are going to wake up, but things will change here too. Directly and indirectly the world will become a more democratic and open society. And that will be a good thing. All of the rich power people struggling to hold on to their status and power as the truth unfolds are the ones who own and control the media. Of course they will only publish articles and news programs that try every way possible to discredit Wikileaks and democracy. Do you think that Mr Warner wants the truth to come out? He might not have any skeletons in his closet or money in offshore accounts....... But don't you think his investments in Bank of America, or Walmart, or Exxon will be affected by the leaks. Most of this ultra rich leaders in our society want stability in the system because we are all a part of it, but they have more at stake. CNN's advertisements come from these large corporations. Our society is intertwined and Wikileaks is a crowbar, prying it apart. A scalpel severing the infection out of certain areas. That's not going to sit well for many people, whether they are a part of it or not. Its also going to cause volatility in the markets which scares people. But in the end, I think the world will be better.
___ Go WikiLeaks ... GO !! ___
I wonder if these politicians also include any that are currently persecuting Assange in the press and through diplomatic pressure on other countries to investigate him.
One criminal helping out another.
Yes, Linda. God forbid the truth should get out. Did it ever occur to you that the rich and powerful pass laws to protect their own wrongdoing? Obviously not. I suggest you buy a bigger sandbox to hide your head in, because the truth is starting to get out whether you like it or not.
Well, Red Cloud, what truth do you imagine has gotten out, that there are rich and powerful crooks among us? Is this news to you? Now, what do you plan to do about it?
Jim,
It's not that it's a surprise that there are rich people manipulating the world; it's just that because of Wikileaks, we can start to attach names to it.
Julian is hot!
He doesnt look so good these days.
@ceecee Hot?!! Hot?!! He's a pale-faced, pouting little crybaby! He's about as "hot" as Michael Moore. No wonder
the two like each other so much!!
hot...thats what his new prison lover is going to be saying Julian is HOT...AND YOU TO CAN HAVE SOME OF HIS A$$ FOR 10 CIGS........
If the "about to be leaked information" pertains to banking practises in the Cayman's a lot of US companies and big executives are about to get realy nervous.
Most folks already have some knowledge of how the Cayman's are used to shield rich folks from paying taxes here at home in the US but I believe most people would be greatly surprised at the true scope of the issue.
These people were notified by the Feds last year and told to pay up (I'm sure not 100%) and they would receive amnesty. Its going to blacken some names and hurt some reputations... but mark my word, none of them will be punished. They are too powerful "to fail". Elmer already gave this info to the Feds. There have been no arrests made.... instead, they notified the crooks and gave them amnesty so when the people find out, there is no way of prosecuting them. Watch and learn how your corrupt government works. Too bad he didn't give this info to Wikileaks BEFORE he gave it to the FBI. This is why a site like Wikileaks is needed. There is no system of checks and balances in our society.
BTW – If the people names on these discs have done nothing wrong then surely they have nothing to worry about right? That's what they tell us when they invade our privacy. Turn about is fair play.
I thought the leak was going to be about Bank of America or was that just speculation?
I wonder if this will affect his proxy extradition/prosecution in Sweden. This is an exciting chess game between Assange and the rich and powerful in the US. Looks like Assange is winning so far.
@Chess. Assange was, IS, and will always be a loser...
MHouston– on what basis do you make your statement?
Without justification, your statement makes you a loser.
Wow! The censorship machine seems to be running in overdrive on the posts here.
Linda, may I ask who you are trying to protect? Lets go after the real criminals, OK?
He should get a Nobel Peace Prize as far as I am concerned.
@Brainfreeze When they give Nobel Prizes for thievery, ugliness, or wimpyness whobetter than Assange to get one!
what if youre name was to appear on this list and you were accused falsely? you will be presumed guilty by association, this isnt right!
Do you not have a system of Justice in the US of America? There is no presumed guilt, except what you've jsut admitted to doing. Open you eyes.
OK, so your name and account number is in this former Swiss bankers hand. Hire a lawyer and a publicist. Like Tom DeLay did.
@ Canadian Sam Take your head out of your ASSange and go stick it in a snowdrift!
I had a wikileak in my pants.
OHH!! you win the internets for that one!