OAN Staff Abril Elfi
5:04 PM – Wednesday, August 13, 2025
President Donald Trump publicly condemned New York Democrat Attorney General Letitia James, labeling her a “disgrace” in response to allegations that she failed to act on evidence suggesting $9.6 billion in sanctions violations.
Trump’s remarks come amid ongoing scrutiny of James’ office, which has been investigating high-profile financial misconduct. Critics of hers maintain that such alleged oversights undermine public trust in the attorney general’s ability to enforce financial and corporate regulations.
On Wednesday, Trump shared an article from The Gateway Pundit on Truth Social, which alleged that the U.S. Second Circuit found at least $9.6 billion of illegal payments by the bank to Iranian and Hezbollah entities.
According to The Gateway Pundit, the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals found that Standard Chartered Bank (SCB) processed at least $9.6 billion in illegal payments to Iranian and Hezbollah entities. These payments were made through SCB’s New York City branch, originating from its Dubai office. The illicit transactions were uncovered through internal trade reports provided by bank whistleblowers, revealing that SCB concealed 100% of its foreign exchange trades in violation of its Deferred Prosecution Agreements from 2015 and 2019.
However, One America News (OAN) has not independently verified the complete accuracy of the recent report published by The Gateway Pundit. A previous whistleblower report posted by The Gateway Pundit, which OAN cited in an article after its posting, was later found to be inaccurate.
President Trump launched his unrestrained critique of James on Truth Social on Wednesday.
“She is a disgrace,” Trump wrote.
If the report is confirmed to be true, the hefty transactions are simply the tip of the iceberg, with over $100 billion in additional unlawful transfers from Standard Chartered Bank’s (SCB) China activities, which facilitate dollar-based deals for oil and other war materials.
According to the outlet, whistleblowers and terrorism finance experts briefed James and senior personnel, including Deputy Bureau Chief Scott Spiegelman, twice about the scheme — in early 2024.
Instead of taking action, James’ office is claimed to have renewed SCB’s state banking license, even though the payments were not disclosed in previous sanctions settlements. The report also highlighted Spiegelman’s subsequent shift to IBM, where he allegedly advised SCB on how to conceal its trade data.
According to The Gateway Pundit, both the Federal Reserve and SWIFT failed to prohibit these transactions despite being aware of Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctions, essentially undercutting the United States’ “Maximum Pressure” campaign.
It urged federal prosecutors to take action, specifically charging SCB with violating its deferred prosecution agreement, requesting Treasury to retake sanction enforcement authority from the Fed, and pursuing more than $10 billion in fines from SCB.
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