Richard Chichakli - Accountant to the Merchant of Death

Richard Chichakli claims that on April 26, 2005, the United States Department of Treasury, Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) unjustifiably froze his assets, assassinated his life, and destroyed his family and business without due-process. He further claims that the cause of the Treasury Department's action was an alleged existing business relation between himself and Vicktor Bout who was sanctioned by Treasury Department on July 2004. He also claims that the agents who searched his office seized more than $500,000 in valuables, including a boxful of diamonds and a stack of $1,000 bills.

It seems to me, as it would to anyone who can read, that the Treasury Department's actions were completely justifiable.

Chichakli claims to have never been the financial manager or accountant of Vicktor Bout, and to have only known him some twelve years ago and then only dealt with him on few occasions, all prior to Bout's being sanctioned by the Treasury Department in July 2004. Chichlaki claims "I was used as scapegoat, nothing more, and nothing less."

I've been following the career of Vicktor Bout for some time now and only one name, other than his brother's, keeps showing up in interviews and articles. That name is Richard Chichakli. I'd like to share with you just a few of Chichakli's claims and the evidence that seems to refute it quite well.

On July, 2, 2007, Chichakli stated that in order to do an interview with Al-Jazeera about the AK-47 rifle and Vicktor Bout's trafficking in such weapons, he would have to actually research Bout. To claim that he had to research the background of Vicktor Bout, a man that he knew twelve years ago, is downright laughable! In fact, in August of 2003, Richard Chichakli was a confidant of Vicktor Bout's and facilitated an interview with Bout, Bout's brother and himself for a reporter named Peter Landesman.