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2.36 MB

Extraction Summary

6
People
18
Organizations
7
Locations
3
Events
3
Relationships
3
Quotes

Document Information

Type: Legal opinion / court document (federal supplement)
File Size: 2.36 MB
Summary

This document is page 833 from a 2005 Federal Court opinion (In Re Terrorist Attacks on September 11, 2001) regarding motions to dismiss by various banking defendants. The text details the court's decision to grant Al Rajhi Bank's motion to dismiss due to a lack of factual allegations connecting the bank to terrorist financing. It also introduces background on the Saudi American Bank, its formation from Citibank branches, and allegations regarding its employees' potential ties to Osama bin Laden and al Qaeda financing.

People (6)

Name Role Context
Judge Robertson Judge
Mentioned as having found no basis for a bank's liability in a previous ruling.
Abdullahziz Bin Hamad Al Gosaibi Chairman
Chairman of Saudi American Bank and Saudi Cement Company.
Ahmed Ali Jumale Bank Employee / Suspect
Alleged close associate of Osama bin Laden; allegedly worked for Saudi American Bank (1979-1986).
Ahmed Nur Ali Jumale Defendant
Mentioned in footnote 42 regarding dismissal of claims.
Osama bin Laden Terrorist Leader
Mentioned as an associate of Ahmed Ali Jumale.
Prince Mohamed Manager
Manager of Al Faisal Islamic Bank.

Timeline (3 events)

1980
Formation of Saudi American Bank
Saudi Arabia
June 10, 2004
Voluntary dismissal of claims against Saudi Cement Company and Ahmed Nur Ali Jumale
Court (03 MD 1570)
September 11, 2001
Terrorist Attacks
United States

Relationships (3)

Ahmed Ali Jumale Associate Osama bin Laden
purportedly a close associate of Osama bin Laden
Its chairman, Abdullahziz Bin Hamad Al Gosaibi
Saudi American Bank Business Succession Citibank
formed in 1980 pursuant to a royal decree to take over the then-existing branches of Citibank

Key Quotes (3)

"[A] complaint which consists of conclusory allegations unsupported by factual assertions fails even on the liberal standard of Rule 12(b)(6)."
Source
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Quote #1
"Saudi American Bank is based in Rihadh, Saudi Arabia and was formed in 1980 pursuant to a royal decree to take over the then-existing branches of Citibank in Riyadh and Jeddah."
Source
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Quote #2
"This Court, like Judge Robertson before it, has found no basis for a bank’s liability for injuries funded by money passing through it on routine banking business."
Source
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Quote #3

Full Extracted Text

Complete text extracted from the document (3,680 characters)

IN RE TERRORIST ATTACKS ON SEPTEMBER 11, 2001 833
Cite as 349 F.Supp.2d 765 (S.D.N.Y. 2005)
with the opportunity to clarify their claims against Al Rajhi Bank, the Burnett Plaintiffs do not offer facts to support their conclusions that Al Rajhi Bank had to know that Defendant charities WAMY, MWL, IIRC, and SJRC were supporting terrorism. See Rule 12(e) Statement ¶¶ 44–60. “[A] complaint which consists of conclusory allegations unsupported by factual assertions fails even on the liberal standard of Rule 12(b)(6).” De Jesus v. Sears, Roebuck & Co., 87 F.3d 65, 70 (2d Cir.1996).
This Court, like Judge Robertson before it, has found no basis for a bank’s liability for injuries funded by money passing through it on routine banking business. See Burnett I, 274 F.Supp.2d at 109. Similarly, allegations concerning the Al Rajhi family cannot support a claim against Al Rajhi Bank because there is no allegation that the family members were acting in furtherance of Al Rajhi Bank business. Tasso v. Platinum Guild Int’l, 94 Civ. 8288(LAP), 1997 WL 16066, at *6 (S.D.N.Y. Jan. 16, 1997). Plaintiffs attach to their opposition brief a September 2002 SAMA report summarizing the initiatives and actions taken by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to combat money laundering and terrorist financing. See Burnett Plaintiffs’ Opp. to Al Rajhi Motion to Dismiss, Ex. 2. Neither this document, nor the complaint, alleges that SAMA or Al Rajhi Bank implemented “know your customer” rules that Al Rajhi failed to follow with respect to accounts held by the Defendant charities. Finally, Plaintiffs’ allegations that Al Rajhi Bank has connections to Hamas supporters fails to state a claim because Plaintiffs have not alleged any relationship between Hamas and al Qaeda or the terrorist attacks of September 11. Even accepting all the allegations against Al Rajhi Bank as true, Plaintiffs have failed to state a claim that would entitle them to relief. Accordingly, Al Rajhi Bank’s motion to dismiss the Burnett complaint is granted in its entirety.
2. Saudi American Bank
[96] Saudi American Bank is based in Rihadh, Saudi Arabia and was formed in 1980 pursuant to a royal decree to take over the then-existing branches of Citibank in Riyadh and Jeddah. Ashton Complaint ¶ 603; Burnett Complaint ¶ 140. It is the second largest bank in Saudi Arabia and has offices in the United States, based in New York. Ashton Complaint ¶ 604; Burnett Complaint ¶¶ 141–42. Its chairman, Abdullahziz Bin Hamad Al Gosaibi is also the Chairman of the Saudi Cement Company in Damman, Saudi Arabia. Ashton Complaint ¶ 605; Burnett Complaint ¶ 142.41 Ahmed Ali Jumale, purportedly a close associate of Osama bin Laden and responsible for helping Defendant Al Baraka penetrate the United States banking system, allegedly worked for Saudi American Bank as a senior employee from 1979 to 1986. Ashton Complaint ¶ 602; Burnett Complaint ¶ 148.42
Plaintiffs claim that Saudi American Bank is the official correspondent of the al Baraka Bank Lebanon; the Riyadh correspondent of Defendant Al Faisal Islamic Bank, which is managed by Defendant Prince Mohamed; and the Riyadh correspondent bank for a branch of Defendant Al Shamal Islamic Bank, which is involved in the financing of al Qaeda. Ashton Complaint ¶¶ 606, 608; Burnett Complaint ¶¶ 143, 146. It is also the bank for Defen-
41. The Ashton Plaintiffs voluntarily dismissed its claims against the Saudi Cement Company and the Arabian Cement Company on June 10, 2004. See 03 MD 1570 Docket # 230.
42. The Ashton Plaintiffs voluntarily dismissed their claims against Ahmed Nur Ali Jumale on June 10, 2004. See 03 MD 1570 Docket # 230.
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