Offshore businessman Marc M. Harris, watched by his mother and a public defender, was denied bail on June 13 in Miami, where he pleaded not guilty to 13 counts of money laundering, according to the KYC newsletter.

The newsletter, formerly Offshore Alert, has been following Mr. Harris for years. Once the rising star of offshore planners, now generally accepted as a scam artist who assists clients with tax evasion and scams them out of their assets at the same time.

Offshore Alert has alleged that he has embezzled over $20 million from clients over the years, and the feud between Harris and Offshore Alert's editor David Marchant has even led to Mr. Harris setting up a spoof Offshore Alert Website.

The article, which was sent out to subscribers via e-mail quoted Magistrate Judge William Turnoff as saying: "It's clear to me that the government has established by a preponderance of the evidence that he is a risk of flight."

And there were "no conditions that would satisfy the court that he would appear" said Judge Turnoff at the end of a hearing that lasted more than half-an-hour, added the newsletter.

In reaching his decision, Judge Turnoff noted that, Mr. Harris had renounced his US citizenship, there were "un-refuted allegations" that he had helped US citizens evade US taxes and judgments, there were allegations that he has engaged in money laundering and there was evidence that he had "aided and abetted" fugitives to escape US justice.

Judge Turnoff commented that Mr. Harris appeared to have "little or no respect for the process of the US courts".

The report added that the judge also noted that Harris had fled Panama to Nicaragua to evade Panamanian justice and that "He did not come back to this country voluntarily. He was expelled from Nicaragua".

Mr. Harris was expelled from Nicaragua on June 10 and immediately flown to Miami, where he was arrested and his indictment - which was filed on May 6, 2003 - unsealed.

Public defender Will Thomas had asked the judge to release Mr. Harris on a corporate surety bond of $150,000 secured by a $2 million home in New York. The home belonged to Mr. Harris' mother, Marian Adler, and her husband, Kurt Adler, who operates a Christmas collectibles company in New York.

Although Mr. Thomas stated that Mr. Harris' family in the United States was prepared to support him, Marian Adler was the defendant's only relative to show up in court and she did not speak.

Mr. Harris' sister, Monique Bloom, described as a "CBS Executive Producer" based in New York, could not attend because she recently had a baby, said Mr. Thomas.

Also missing were Harris' father, J. Baum Harris, of Alton Road Avenue, Long Beach, California, and his ex-wife Nancy Harris and their three children, aged seven, 12 and 14, who also live in California.

Marc Harris himself did not address the court, other than to confirm his name, age and that he had lived in Philadelphia until around 1978. He later moved to Florida before leaving the United States for Panama in 1989.

Prosecutor David Buckner told the court that Mr. Harris could not be trusted and had the means to escape the jurisdiction if he was released on bail.

"This defendant came here the other day and said he was a software developer," said Buckner, referring to Harris' first court appearance on Wednesday. "That's not true."

Mr. Buckner said that Mr. Harris "does not seem to care" about the legal process, adding: "In his first opportunity to address the court, he chose to lie."

Mr. Buckner also disputed Harris' claim in his first court appearance that he was broke, other than owning a $500,000 property in Chile.

"Based on our current estimates this defendant has access to at least $2 million and possibly more because it's impossible to track all of his assets," said Mr. Buckner.