THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, January 31, 1997 TAG: 9701310544
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY LYNN WALTZ, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: 82 lines
Richard Hirschfeld, a once-prominent Virginia attorney turned federal fugitive, was arrested this week in the Canary Islands in an apartment with his Rolls Royce parked outside.
Hirschfeld was arrested Tuesday night by Spanish National Police on Tenerife Island, where he has lived since fleeing Spain in early December. Authorities said Hirschfeld shipped the Rolls from Virginia to the islands when he fled.
The FBI began looking for Hirschfeld after he failed to turn himself in following his Nov. 21 Norfolk federal court indictment for fraud. Federal authorities will seek extradition, they said Thursday. Hirschfeld could be returned as early as April if Spanish authorities approve U.S. extradition requests. The Canary Islands are a province of Spain.
Hirschfeld turned up in Madrid in early December and announced through The Associated Press that he was seeking political asylum. Hirschfeld, who has hobnobbed with the rich and famous and dabbled in international intrigue, then disappeared again.
Some of Hirschfeld's associates believed the Spanish government would protect him until his request was approved or denied. Local authorities said his arrest indicates Spanish authorities do not feel he is eligible for asylum.
``We want to express our appreciation for the efforts of the Spanish National Police,'' said Assistant U.S. Attorney David Barger, who is prosecuting the case. Barger is based in Alexandria.
Norfolk FBI spokesman Bo McFarland said Thursday that Hirschfeld will go before a Spanish magistrate, who will set a bond or deny bond. ``It's technically possible they could release him on bond, but we certainly hope not,'' McFarland said.
The Justice Department has 45 days to present a formal extradition request. After an extradition hearing, a Spanish court may deliberate for three to six months. If extradition is ordered, federal agents have 10 days to pick him up.
Hirschfeld was indicted in Norfolk in November for allegedly conspiring to send fraudulent letters to judges in Richmond and Norfolk to get out of prison. He was serving a federal sentence on securities and tax fraud before he was released on probation in 1995.
Nina Ginsberg, an Alexandria attorney who represented Hirschfeld before he fled, was surprised to learn Thursday of his arrest. She said she would not comment publicly without talking to Hirschfeld first.
Tenerife is the largest of 13 islands that make up the Canary Islands, sometimes called ``The Hawaii of Europe.'' The islands are about 60 miles off the northwest coast of Africa, due west of the Sahara Desert and at the same latitude as Florida.
Playas de Americas, the area where Hirschfeld was living, is on the south side of the island. It is the one of the most popular beach resorts on the islands, boasting posh hotels and nonstop nightlife.
Hirschfeld was living in Charlottesville before he fled. He left, he said in an Associated Press interview last month, because ``there is a conspiracy against me. I am exasperated - totally frustrated at not being able to get a fair hearing.''
Hirschfeld claims now, as he did upon his release in 1995, that the federal charges are a vendetta prompted by his alleged efforts to sabotage efforts by former Virginia U.S. Attorney Henry E. Hudson to become a federal judge. The claims by Hirschfeld were earlier rejected by a Norfolk federal judge.
In his heyday, Hirschfeld counted Muhammad Ali, Kenny Rogers and the Saudi royal family among his friends and associates. Hirschfeld, a whiz-kid financier, cut a high-profile figure in Hampton Roads business circles before running into legal problems.
In one wild foray into international investigations, Hirschfeld reportedly tricked deposed Philippines dictator Ferdinand Marcos into confessing plans to retake his country. Hirschfeld relayed the information to a U.S. Senate subcommittee.
He gained widespread notoriety for accompanying Ali to the Middle East in 1985 to lobby for the release of U.S. hostages. ILLUSTRATION: Color photo
Richard Hirschfeld
Graphic
Who is Richard Hirschfeld?
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KEYWORDS: RICHARD HIRSCHFELD ARREST