David Marchant (journalist)
David Marchant | |
|---|---|
| Born | c. 1965 (age 58–59) |
| Nationality | British |
| Occupation | Journalist |
| Known for | Investigative reporting |
David E. Marchant (born c. 1965) is British journalist who is the publisher and editor of OffshoreAlert, a newsletter that specialises in the exposure of international financial crime. Marchant claims to have received death threats and to have been sued in five countries.
Early life and career
Marchant was born c. 1965.[1] His first journalistic job was as a news reporter for The Gwent Gazette (1985–1987) in Ebbw Vale, Wales. He then worked as a reporter for the Bournemouth Evening Echo (1987–1989) and the Western Daily Press (1989–1990) of Bristol. From 1990 to 1993 he was a business reporter for The Royal Gazette in Bermuda and from 1994 to 1996 he was business editor at the Bermuda Sun.[2]
OffshoreAlert
In 1997,[3] Marchant founded OffshoreAlert, a newsletter that specialises in the exposure of international financial crime, of which he is the editor.[4] In the course of his work he has been sued in the United States, the Cayman Islands, Canada and Panama. He was sued in Grenada by the former Prime Minister Keith Mitchell. Marchant says he does not have insurance against libel cases in order not to have to approve his stories with lawyers before publishing them, and claims that "We’ve never lost a libel action, never published a correction or apology to any plaintiffs and never paid — or been required to pay — them one cent in costs or damages."[5]
Among the stories that Marchant has covered have been the Ponzi scheme at First International Bank of Grenada,[6] fraud at the Cayman Islands-based Axiom Legal Financing Fund,[7] and alleged irregularity at Belvedere Management group. In 2009 The Wall Street Journal reported that 11 people had been charged with crimes as a result of his work of which five had been jailed.[1] The first person to sue Marchant was Marc Harris who was subsequently sentenced to 17 years in jail for money laundering and tax evasion.[8] According to Marchant, he has received more than one death threat and the subject of one of his investigations had a T-shirt that read "David Marchand [sic] is only alive because killing him would be a crime".[3]
Marchant also runs the annual Financial Due Diligence Conference.[1]
References
- ^ a b c Under Florida Sun, Tax Avoiders, Enforcers Trade Notes, Schmooze. Jesse Drucker, The Wall Street Journal, 2 May 2009. Retrieved 6 April 2015.
- ^ David Marchant. LinkedIn. Retrieved 6 April 2015.
- ^ a b Meet Belvedere Ponzi buster David Marchant – Kellermann's nemesis. Alec Hogg, BizNews.com, 25 March 2015. Retrieved 6 April 2015.
- ^ Editor's Blog. OffshoreAlert. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
- ^ INDEX INTERVIEW: 'I've never published a correction or apology'. Miren Gutierrez, Index on Censorship, 20 November 2012. Retrieved 6 April 2015.
- ^ Post-Ponzi scheme, Grenada to reopen for offshore banking. Colin Woodard, The Christian Science Monitor, 31 May 2008. Retrieved 6 April 2015.
- ^ Journalist investigating £100m investment fraud given 'absurd' harassment warning by Met Police. Dominic Ponsford, Press Gazette, 25 April 2014. Retrieved 6 April 2015.
- ^ Marc Harris Faces 17 Year Jail Sentence. Glen Shapiro, Tax-News, 2 June 2004. Retrieved 6 April 2015.