Danish fugitive's L.A. tour coming to an end

The jet-setting Danish fugitive and CEO who surrendered to Los Angeles police on skid row could be returned to his home country by the end of the week, federal authorities said today.

Stein Bagger, who as head of the IT Factor software company allegedly defrauded investors of up to $170 million, did not disclose that he had been accused of crimes in Europe, a violation of his immigration status that will result in his quick deportation,  Immigration Customs Enforcement officials said.

"Our role is to complete his return to Denmark in an expedient manner," said Brian DeMore, field office director for the agency’s detention and removal operations in Los Angeles. “He is anxious to go back to his home country and face his accusers.”

ICE officials noted there was no warrant for his arrest in the United States at the time of his surrender, which could have substantially lengthened the time it took to deport him.

Before he turned up on skid row, Bagger hadn't been seen since Nov. 27 in Dubai.  He  entered the U.S. last month under the so-called visa waiver program, in which visitors from specified overseas countries can stay in the U.S. for up to 90 days for business or pleasure without a visa. Bagger, the most-wanted man in Denmark, was being held in an undisclosed jail in Los Angeles County after surrendering to the LAPD on Saturday.

The unusual story -- and remarkable fall from grace -- has been likened by some in the Danish press as  that country’s equivalent of the O.J. Simpson case.

Read the rest after the jump.

--Andrew Blankstein

As CEO of the IT Factory software company, Bagger appeared to have a golden touch, doubling the firm’s revenue and profit for each of its last three fiscal years. The company was reportedly prepared  to announce a $53.6-million profit.

The 41-year-old software executive showed up at the Central Area station on Saturday wearing a $65,000 Rolex watch and a $3,000 Armani leather jacket, telling a desk officer he was wanted in Europe and that he was surrendering.

Police said he indicated he believed he was in danger, but he did not elaborate. Police were initially skeptical before discovering that he was wanted by Interpol after running his name through Google. Bagger told police he came to Los Angeles on Friday, staying overnight at a hotel. He drove to Los Angeles after borrowing a $96,000 Audi A-8S and a credit card from a friend in Connecticut.

He arrived in New York on Nov. 28 on a flight from Dubai. He decided on the Central station in the skid row area of Los Angeles after punching up Los Angeles police on the Audi’s global positioning satellite system.

Bagger was also said to have ties to Hells Angels members in Denmark, who were implicated in a brutal attack on a supposed associate before Bagger left the country. Authorities investigating the company determined that more than 90% of the company’s revenue was based on fraud, allegedly including dummy contracts for computers and software from fake companies, then sold those leasing contracts to banks and other investors.

Authorities charge that Bagger  forged the signature of the company’s chairman to avoid board scrutiny. The investigation led Interpol to issue a warrant for his arrest on charges of counterfeiting, forgery and fraud. But there was no warrant issued in the United States when Bagger arrived in the U.S.

Comments

[Dorte Toft]

The Danish Police has just announced that Mikael Ljungman is considered involved. He will be indicted ("Sigtet" is the Danish world) in the IT Factory scam.

[Amy K. Stoddard]

Has anybody looked into this so-called "friend" of his in Conn. ??? This Mikael Ljungman, a Swede, was in court in Sweden the other day for similar charges. He admitted in Danish tv that he loaned him the car and credit cards and that he didn´t pressure him to turn himself in. Smells like aiding and abetting to me..... what does the ICE have to say about that one ???

[theidahokid]

You can steal more with a pen and a nice smile then you can with a gun anytime, bet he's got a bundle stashed somewhere, hold out, don't talk, you can bargin for a light sentence and a slice of the pie. It's all about money honey.