A arguable India businessman Gaurav Kumar Srivastava, presently living inside the US, has been accused of orchestrating worldwide scams wherein he claimed to be a applicable research business enterprise (CIA) operative to defraud global businessmen, together with the Geneva-based Dutch oil provider Niels Troost.
An research posted in reputable investigative journalism dialogue board “undertaking Brazen” has laid naked the complete quantity of approaches Srivastava conned the Dutch oil dealer, leading to a felony warfare. The complicated internet of lies has been uncovered on the “assignment Brazen” by means of the Pulitzer Prize-winning former Wall avenue journal reporter Bradley choice and Scobin Kim
in line with the available proof, Gaurav Srivastava met Troost in summer season 2022 at the G20 summit in Bali that November. The Atlantic Council hosted the event backed with extra than $1 million with the aid of the usage of the Gaurav & Sharon Srivastava basis, the non-profits NGO run by way of the use of Srivastava together along with his wife Sharon Srivastava (née Johnson) within the call of ‘securing meals & power for america and the area’. Troost and Srivastava joined a panel of professionals to talk approximately international food safety, and the Atlantic Council’s President Frederick Kempe profusely thanked Srivastava for his beneficiant donation however he had no idea what ought to take region inside the following months.
in keeping with the assignment Brazen investigation, Niels Troost changed into introduced in summer time 2022 by means of a mutual touch to Gaurav Kumar Srivastava, who pretended to be very well linked with the Washington energy circles and additionally to the us’s primary secret agent organisation – the CIA. At that factor, the oil dealer become in a rustic of growing panic as someone purporting to be a US government informant had falsely led him to consider that the Federal Bureau of research (FBI) have become investigating him and his commodities-trading agency located in Switzerland, Paramount electricity & Commodities SA. Months into Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Paramount changed into continuing to change Russian oil, particularly crude, in complete compliance with the regulation, transport from a port near Vladivostok. at the time, the G-7 changed into actively considering a rate cap on Russian oil, with the us as its largest supporter.
Troost asked Gaurav Srivastava for help. Srivastava confident him that he’s going to deal with the FBI and led Troost to consider he become a “non-first rate cover” or NOC (pronounced “knock”) for the CIA and operated on the senior diploma among a complete of 30 NOCs round the world. Srivastava put forth a doubtful proposition: if Troost must make Srivastava a associate inside the commercial corporation, with the resource of shifting 50% of the stocks of Paramount to a Delaware-included enterprise managed by Srivastava, and living house Paramount into the usa, Troost could quietly be excused from destiny sanctions on Russia, because he may then be part of a rustic-standard community to gather intelligence on behalf of the united states. Srivastava stipulated that the switch need to take place through US law company Baker & Hostetler.
in line with the research, Srivastava lied to Troost that he become concerned in pinnacle-secret counter-terrorism missions, such as numerous in Afghanistan, and that during 2008 he modified into held hostage by using using ISIS inside the Democratic Republic of Congo – no matter there being no proof of ISIS in the DRC at the time.
consistent with a transcript in their assembly, Srivastava, who became born in Lucknow in Northern India and now appears to are living in los angeles along with his spouse Sharon, informed Troost that it emerge as via his work as a CIA agent that he modified into capable of make high-stage contacts in Congress and the nation branch and that those contacts could permit Troost to preserve doing enterprise in Russia after the invasion of Ukraine with a completely unique license from the workplace of foreign belongings control (OFAC), supplied that he agreed to Srivastava’s conditions. in keeping with the prison papers, Troost engaged Baker & Hostetler as Paramount’s advise in November 2022. He became not, but, made conscious that Jeffrey Berg, a companion at employer, and Srivastava had been industrial enterprise partners in a South African organisation known as Himmelhoch Petroleum and gasoline.
felony papers show that inside a one year, Troost had transferred 50% of the shares to Srivastava however had but to complete the usa domiciling of Paramount because of growing doubts approximately Srivastava’s bona fides. Srivastava made tall claims about his CIA and FBI connections however become not in a position to expose any proof of his have an impact on, making Troost an increasing number of uneasy.
even as Srivastava realised that Troost become having doubts and delaying, he grew to end up adverse closer to the oil dealer and informed him he must hurry with america domiciling otherwise he can overlook about any favors. In an aggressively worded textual content message to Troost, he wrote: “prevent with games & let you know body of workers too or as a shareholder I need to block the rate variety of the employer. I informed you no longer BS me. i am sincerely accomplished Niels.”
Gaurav Kumar Srivastava ramped up his name-losing as nicely, telling Troost that he had weathered a profane outburst from the Director of the CIA, William J. Burns, due to the truth Troost turned into dragging his ft over this specific transaction.
in line with felony papers, it was in April 2023 that Troost hired investigators to carry out due diligence on Srivastava and observed a chilling records of fraud suits and unpaid payments: in 2017, a Colombian businessman sued Srivastava for income of unlicensed clinical devices; in 2019, a medical institution sued Srivastava for stopping bills on tests paid for scientific payments; within the identical twelve months, a lady in l. a. sued Srivastava and his partner for failing to pay off a loan of $one hundred,000; Srivastava counter-sued her for slander even as she sent a message to Srivastava’s ability enterprise partner calling him “a thief and a con artist,” whereupon the ability business associate withdrew from a multi-million-dollar commercial enterprise deal.
Seeing the intelligence reports of Srivastava’s alleged fraud, Troost observed out that Srivastava had no connections with the CIA and that he changed into most effective a huckster who cobbled collectively faux memories to feign an air of significance, exclusivity and impunity. His actual motive, Troost got here to do not forget, become to make off with Paramount once it turned into domiciled into america, which includes to a portfolio of pilfered businesses.
at the same time as Troost refused to reply, Srivastava and his prison professional Berg met with the ambassador of Turkiye to the united states to try to derail Troost’s commercial enterprise preparations to spend money on a terminal in the united states of america. Berg wrote a letter to the Swiss ambassador to the united states and the us ambassador to Switzerland, levelling false and more and more wild allegations about Troost’s business in the preference that Paramount could come beneath authentic scrutiny. This rely wide variety is subject to ongoing felony motion in which Gaurav Srivastava has been described as a serial conman and fraud. The times are set to reveal more scandalous cloth in coming months.
