[Ache]

http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/WallStree ... 405&page=1

"I would die and go to hell if it's a Ponzi scheme," Stanford said in reaction to civil allegations from the Securities and Exchange Commission that he bilked thousands of customers in an $8 billion fraudulent scheme involving "self-styled certificates of deposits" with "improbable" rates of return.

"Baloney. Baloney," Stanford told ABC News. "It's not a Ponzi scheme. If it was a Ponzi scheme, why are they finding billions and billions of dollars all over the place?"

Stanford says he is assembling a legal team, including Houston criminal defense lawyer Dick DeGuerin, to fight the indictment he expects soon.

A Department of Justice spokesperson declined to comment on the Stanford investigation but a senior official said the case is "moving along rapidly."

Stanford was near tears throughout the interview, and at times cried as he described how the SEC action had deprived him of being listed as the 405th wealthiest person in the world by Forbes magazine.

"I'm the maverick rich Texan where they can put the moose head on the wall. And that's the only reason they went after me," Stanford said. "I'm fighting for my survival and for my integrity."

Asked about descriptions that compared his financial empire to that of convicted Ponzi scheme operator Bernard Madoff, Stanford reacted with anger.

"Bullsh--. That's bullsh--," he said. "It makes me madder than hell and it touches the core of my soul."

[TreeFarmer]

Sounds like a con-man to the end. At least he's consistent.

TF