After all, last year, Stanford's Venezuelan offices were raided on suspicion that the billionaire was a US government tool, involved in spying:
Officials from Venezuelan military intelligence raided a branch of his offshore bank over claims that its employees were paid by the CIA to spy on the south American country.
The officials spent three hours searching files and documents at offices of Stanford International Banks in the Venezuelan capital Caracas, removing several of them for closer inspection.
The Stanford Group's spokeswoman, Lula Rodriguez, denied that any of the bank's employees were involved in spying.
SEC Was Told To Back Off Stanford In 2006:
It's becoming clear that the juiciest aspects of the Stanford Fraud have to do with his political connections. We know he was a friend of George W. Bush, that he donated a lot to Congressmen, and that he practically bought off big-time Democrats to kill an anti-money laundering bill. Now we learn that the SEC's initial investigation into Stanford was waived off in 2006.
This was buried at the end of a NYT report:
The current S.E.C. charges stem from an inquiry opened in October 2006 after a routine exam of Stanford Group, according to Stephen J. Korotash, an associate regional director of enforcement with the agency’s Fort Worth office.
He said the S.E.C. “stood down” on its investigation at the time at the request of another federal agency, which he declined to name, but resumed the inquiry in December 2008.