FORMER CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD OF E.S. BANKEST SENTENCED IN BANK FRAUD PROSECUTION

R. Alexander Acosta, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Jonathan I. Solomon, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, announced that United States District Court Judge Adalberto Jordan today sentenced defendant Eduardo Orlansky, the former chairman of the board of E.S. Bankest, to 20 years imprisonment for his crimes related to bank fraud and money-laundering at E.S. Bankest in Miami.

The case involved a loss of $164-million to entities of the Espirito Santo Group, which includes Espirito Santo Bank in Miami, and Judge Jordan's sentence included an order that Eduardo Orlansky make restitution of $164,597,310.11. During the sentencing hearing, Judge Jordan described the magnitude of the loss as "staggering."

Eduardo Orlansky and three co-defendants were convicted following a six-month jury trial in Miami last year. Eduardo Orlansky was convicted of 44 felony counts, including bank fraud, wire fraud, money-laundering, and conspiracy. Evidence at trial showed that E.S. Bankest, a factoring company in the business of funding clients secured by clients' accounts receivable, borrowed multimillions of dollars of money from Espirito Santo Bank clients based on fraud, including fabricated accounts receivable; Espirito Santo Group eventually took the debt positions of the clients, and absorbed the loss. The indictment charged a conspiracy from approximately June, 1994, until August, 2003, when an examiner was appointed by the federal court to look into the affairs of the company, which collapsed.

Eduardo Orlansky was the last of the four tried defendants to be sentenced. Previously, Eduardo Orlansky's brother, E.S. Bankest President Hector Orlansky, also was sentenced to 20 years in prison. R. Peter Stanham, former corporate Secretary and Treasurer of E.S. Bankest, was sentenced to 108 months in prison. Ariadna Puerto, former Vice-President of E.S. Bankest, was sentenced to 84 months in prison. Those defendants also were ordered to make restitution. Nine people were criminally charged in connection with the fraud. Five pled guilty and were previously sentenced.

United States Attorney Acosta stated, "This lengthy sentence reflects the seriousness and
magnitude of this defendant' fraud. Business dealings must be conducted honestly and ethically, and those who break the law for their personal or business advantage will face serious consequences."

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Caroline Heck Miller and Ryan
Stumphauzer, and by former Assistant United States Attorney Matthew Menchel. The case was
investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, whose diligence and thoroughness in
investigating the complex case and analyzing and managing the voluminous evidence was praised by United States Attorney R. Alexander Acosta.