socalfunplaces Page 49
Page 49
A mixture of shock and a damn guilt instantly surged into Hawke's heart.
Cipher also ventured into dangerous territory to help him.
“Cheon Song-yi,” Hawke sighed, “you stay here for a bit, I need to leave.”
Lane Group Building, Office of Chief Legal Counsel
At this moment, sitting in front of Hawke was a silver-haired old man wearing an elegant three-piece suit.
Gerald, the chief legal counsel of the Lane Group, looked grave at that moment.
He opened the bottom drawer of his desk and took out a thick, slightly worn blue book—the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure.
The pages flipped rapidly, finally stopping at item 35.
He tapped the key clauses with his finger, and the paper made a crisp sound.
“Young Master, I understand the situation you’ve described.” Gerard’s voice was steady. “The other side has bypassed all conventional extradition requests, using the pretext that ‘web weavers’ endanger global security. Extradition from another country is impossible through an extradition treaty.”
After he finished speaking, he showed Hawke a statute from the code he was holding, highlighting Rule 35(b).
“But we can consider changing Cipher’s identity.”
Hawke's gaze instantly locked onto the clause, a glint of light flashing deep in his pupils: "A key witness? A 'tainted witness' pointing to the group's overseas operations?"
“That’s right, but this definitely needs your and your father’s consent, after all…”
Hawke nodded; he understood the underlying reasons—it simply required him to expose some of his own flaws.
After a moment's thought, I immediately decided: Let's do it!
“I’ll talk to my father,” Hawke said firmly. “Tell me what to do.”
Gerard nodded, scribbling and drawing in his notebook as he spoke.
"I will immediately file an Emergency Designation and Witness Protection Motion in the New York Federal Court. First, I will prepare a self-examination report, including the 'historical issues' we sorted out last year involving the former transportation ministers of three small Southeast Asian countries, with the amount under ten million US dollars and the time frame before 2002. Second, I will prepare a Jurisdiction Objection, based on Article 7 of the Interpol-United States Cooperation Agreement—that persons arrested in the United States must be transferred to the domestic justice system within forty-eight hours. Citing precedent… the United States v. Carlos Ghosn case, which also emphasized the part where procedural violations rendered the evidence invalid."
“Understood. The self-inspection report confirms the existence of the case, and the jurisdictional objection forces them to hand over the person.” Hawke’s eyes lit up, and he nodded repeatedly. Gerard, as expected of a veteran, immediately grasped the core issue. “Then what is the subject of the motion?”
“Young Master, this requires your personal signature, in your dual capacity as a member of the board of directors of the Ryan Group and the heir to the Ryan Group.”
Hawke nodded, tapping his fingers on the armrest of his chair, and said, "That's no problem. Also, the whistleblowing and prosecution of the CIA is illegal. Although they used the name of the Department of Homeland Security for this enforcement action, Vivian has a history of espionage at Columbia University and obtains information by recruiting or monitoring American citizens. Professor Vivian... needs a little help."
A knowing glint flashed in Gerard's eyes, and he nodded: "Understood. Confuse the situation and exhaust her energy."
That morning, news that shook the New York legal community broke!
Hawk Lane, known as the "eye of the financial storm," and his Lane Group's massive legal team have filed an explosive application in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York:
"Emergency motion requesting judicial protection and segregation of 'The Web Weaver' (Seifer), a key witness to potential misconduct in the transnational business activities of the Lane Group!"
Core of the motion:
During its extremely rigorous internal compliance review, the Lane Group regrettably discovered that some legacy marginal practices may have had minor friction with unclear local regulations.
The key figure who holds the core evidence of these "friction" incidents and can uncover a larger international chain of interests behind them is none other than the legendary intelligence broker, "The Web Weaver," Cipher!
She contacted us proactively, expressing her willingness to become a witness for the prosecution!
However! Just as we were about to begin in-depth cooperation with the witness, he was illegally arrested by suspected CIA personnel!
The "web weaver" possesses crucial evidence that could shake Wall Street and even the international financial order; her safety is of paramount importance!
This move by the CIA is a serious interference with judicial independence and an attempt to cover up the truth!
The plaintiff requests the court to immediately place Seifer under the protective custody of federal marshals, based on relevant laws, specifically the provisions that allow witnesses to commit serious economic crimes to apply for segregated detention to avoid interference from intelligence agencies!
This news was like a nuclear bomb detonating at the Department of Justice and CIA headquarters!
The federal judge was bewildered by the strongly worded motion, the chain of evidence, and especially the "minor incident" that Lane Corporation had revealed itself, which solidified the initial integrity of Cipher's value.
89. The Clash Between the Tycoons and the CIA [Please Subscribe]
CIA
Vivian was so angry when she saw the internal emergency notice and the indictment accusing her of illegal law enforcement in China that she almost crushed her coffee cup.
After intense discussions with the department's legal counsel and relevant leaders, she immediately issued a strong response through official channels the following day:
This strong response mainly addresses several points:
First, the CIA does not have law enforcement authority in the United States, nor would it illegally exercise such authority! Your Lane Group should not make baseless accusations!
Second, our personnel at Columbia University were engaged in legitimate intelligence gathering!
While the CIA does not have law enforcement authority in the United States, it still possesses basic operational rights and has not illegally recruited or monitored American citizens.
Furthermore, the operation to carry out the arrest was ultimately conducted by the Secret Service, a branch of the Department of Homeland Security! The procedures were completely legal!
Third, a tainted witness? The person who weaves this web is a top-level dangerous individual wanted by Interpol, involved in multiple serious crimes. How could he be a mere witness in your bribery case?
This is misleading and obstructing the investigation of a major national security case!
Hawke's legal team immediately retorted:
Oh? Intelligence activities? Hawke had already contacted Cipher regarding the witness testimonies, and CIA agent Vivian suddenly arrived at Columbia University as an actuarial science lecturer, using an academic guise to approach Hawke. Does this constitute an abuse of her position, illegal surveillance of a U.S. citizen, or illegal acquisition of intelligence? We strongly suspect the CIA of overstepping its authority in domestic economic cases to protect Wall Street parasites with vested interests!
The two sides traded barbs, their arguments sizzling in the media and court documents, each presenting their own version of events. The core issue, however, remained the same:
Is Safer a tainted witness in an economic crime case, or a serious national security offender? Who should have jurisdiction?
Hawke has no patience for empty talk.
He sat in the war room on the top floor of the Ryan Group, as if commanding a war:
Lane Group's legal department continued to pressure the federal court, filing an "Emergency Habeas Corpus" application, with the core argument that "the CIA's overreach in arresting our key economic case witness, Cipher, seriously violated his personal liberty and the trial proceedings!"
At the same time, a beautifully packaged and "sincere" self-inspection report on the overseas business of the Lane Group and a preliminary rectification plan were delivered to the court and the SEC. The report "casually" detailed those "trivial" bribery details, confirming Seifer's "extremely high value" as a tainted witness.
Several heavyweight senators and representatives with deep ties to the Lane Group launched a full-scale attack on Capitol Hill!
At a hearing before the Intelligence Committee on Capitol Hill, he slammed his fist on the table: "We need the truth! Where are the boundaries of the CIA's covert surveillance programs at home? Was Vivian's activity at Columbia University compliant? If it was, then aren't we all under CIA surveillance at all times?"
He then spoke passionately at the Finance Committee hearing: "Corruption on Wall Street must be thoroughly investigated! But there are indications that certain intelligence agencies may be using 'national security' as a pretext to cover up financial crimes and suppress business competitors! This is undermining market fairness and judicial impartiality! Congress must thoroughly investigate whether the CIA interfered in the Lane Group bribery investigation!"
Media headlines instantly changed to: "Breaking News on Capitol Hill: CIA Colluding with Wall Street?" and "Hock Lane Accuses Intelligence Giant of Interfering in Justice Corruption Investigation!"
A media storm quickly erupted, pointing the finger at the CIA for procedural irregularities and potential corruption.
At this moment, Vivian no longer had that air of being in control. Her eyes were tired, and she was clearly feeling immense pressure.
"Is this what a top-tier conglomerate is like?" Vivian was so angry she almost laughed.
She had initially thought that if Hawke wanted to save Cipher, he might use all sorts of connections and spend money to bribe officials, or even pay the president to sign a pardon.
They might hire professional mercenaries to carry out an armed rescue;
It's also possible they won't care about Cipher at all, leaving her to fend for herself...
But unexpectedly, they managed to put the CIA in a difficult position simply by using legal means...
At that moment, the door opened, and Cipher, who had been brought in for interrogation again, slowly walked into the cold interrogation room. After sitting down, he elegantly picked up his water glass, as if he were sipping tea.
0 ······Requesting flowers···· ········
“Vivian,” Seifer’s red lips parted slightly, her voice carrying a hint of lazy mockery, “that top arms smuggler you’re tracking, codenamed ‘Wolf King,’ who’s wreaking havoc in the Middle East and North Africa… do you want to know the time, place, and counterparty of his next large-scale transaction, and… the real account details of that shell bank in Zurich?”
Vivian was still under pressure from the tycoon when she heard Cipher's words, and her eyes narrowed!
"Wolf King" was a big fish the CIA dreamed of catching! They had been hunting him for a full ten years!
"Conditions?" Vivian's voice was icy.
“It’s simple,” Cipher put down his water glass, his smile harmless yet deadly. “Acknowledge my status as a ‘valuable tainted witness’ in the Lane Corporation bribery case and hand me over to the custody of the U.S. Marshals. My lawyer will handle the subsequent ‘witness cooperation’ matters.”
..... 0 ....
Vivian's face turned ashen.
She knew it was a blatant deal, but the intelligence value of the "Wolf King" was too high!
In addition, the pressure from the Lane Group was so great that anyone, even the president, would think it was a very worthwhile deal.
Although Cipher is the most wanted criminal, he is ultimately just an intelligence broker with a criminal gang operating under him, primarily in Europe, Africa, and South America.
But Wolf King is different. He smuggles weapons, instigates wars, and recently received intelligence that he might be trading a batch of radioactive bombs. This is far more serious than Cipher's crimes!
Vivian leaned back and sighed softly. This matter was probably settled now. The CIA was already under tremendous pressure. They wanted to back down, but backing down would mean losing face, so they could only hold on.
But the clue about the wolf king was clearly the last straw that broke the camel's back...
Once the Wolf King's information is released, even her chief will be eager to agree to Cipher's series of conditions.
After consulting with the director and confirming the value of the intelligence, a secret agreement was reached in the shadows.
The CIA has softened its stance and is no longer strongly opposed to the transfer of the long-term property.
90. If you were wearing this uniform in the dorm that day...
Top floor of the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York, special detention area.
The heavy alloy door slid open silently, letting in the pale white light of the corridor.
Vivian stood in the doorway, her figure casting a long shadow on the cold, smooth floor.
She looked at the figure in the center of the room—Sefer was still wearing the burgundy silk shirt and black trousers he had worn when he was arrested, with a specially made matte black restraint strap on his wrist.
Several days of detention did not diminish her aura. She leaned against the wall, her posture even carrying a hint of languor, like a cheetah taking a nap in a trap.
Upon seeing Vivian, the corners of her lips slowly curved upwards, a smile as beautiful yet deadly as a datura flower laced with deadly poison.
"It's time, Commander Vivian?" Cipher's voice was languid.
Two female Secret Service agents stepped forward expressionlessly, their movements as professional and swift as ever.
One of the men, "507," held a key and, with a soft "click," untied the restraints on Cipher's wrist.
The other person remained on high alert.
Cipher moved his wrist, which had just regained its freedom, leaving a clear red mark on his fair skin.
She didn't look at the two teammates; her gaze remained fixed on Vivian's face, where she could clearly see the suppressed anger and a hint of barely perceptible frustration in the other's eyes.
Her gaze passed over Vivian's shoulder, as if piercing through layers of walls, looking towards some empty space: