Stanford’s Tearful Denial

Tell us how you really feel. Allen Stanford, the eccentric Texas financier accused of defrauding investors of $8 billion, cried, vehemently proclaimed his innocence, and even threatened to punch a reporter in the face in a new interview. “I would die and go to hell if it’s a Ponzi scheme,” he said of the allegations. “It makes me madder than hell and it touches the core of my soul.” Stanford says he expects to be indicted by a federal grand jury in the next few weeks, but in the meantime, the SEC has frozen his assets, with truly tragic results. Stripped of all but a few changes of clothes and access to his six private jets, Stanford was—brace yourself—forced to fly on a commercial airplane for the first time in almost 20 years. “They make you take your shoes off and everything, it’s terrible,” a tearful Stanford said of the experience. The self-described “maverick” threatened violence when asked about his alleged connection to Mexican drug cartels. “If you say that to my face again, I will punch you in the mouth,” he said.