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Walter Soriano

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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Martinpri (talk | contribs) at 21:42, 21 October 2021 (Removed paragraph of Affidavit of Doron Stempler. According to an article in Israeli online newspaper ICE (https://www.ice.co.il/law/news/article/814698), the court struck the affidavit from the record as it was improperly submitted as part of Drucker's affidavit, which prevented Soriano's legal team from cross-examining Stempler and refuting what they claim are false accusations. Furthermore, the reference of the deleted paragraph is an article by Raviv Drucker himself, who is COI in this case). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Walter Soriano
Born
Walter Zvi Soriano

(1967-12-24) 24 December 1967 (age 57)
Argentina
NationalityBritish
Israeli
OccupationBusinessman

Walter Zvi Soriano (born December 24, 1967) is a British-Israeli businessman.[1] He is CEO and owner of several companies, including USG Security Ltd., a UK-based firm specializing in litigation support, crisis management and asset tracing, and WSLM, a real estate management company.[2][3][4]. Soriano is a family friend of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.[5]

Early life

Soriano was born in Argentina, and immigrated to Israel as a young man. He served in the Israel Defense Forces as an intelligence officer, and later moved to London.[5]

Career

On October 3, 2002, Soriano set up an international security company called the Universe Security Group, based in London, jointly owned with Guy Nagar and Yitzhak Molcho, who received about half of the company's shares. The company's board of directors also included Nahum Admoni, who served as the Director-General of the Mossad from 1982 to 1989, and Uri Sagi, former head of the Military Intelligence Directorate, and Albert Raes, Former Director of the Belgian State Security Service (VSSE) from 1977-1990.[6]

In 2004, Universe Security Group was appointed by the AMP (Panama Maritime Association) as a RSO (Recognized Security Organization) to certify ship security plans in accordance with the ISPS (International Ship and Port Facility Security) code.[7]

In 2007, Soriano and Universe Security Group were involved in a trade deal to sell three Bell 212 helicopters, which served the Spanish Fire Department, to the Georgian Ministry of Defense through the mediation of Gal Hirsch, a former Israeli brigadier general, while Hirsch served as an adviser to the Georgian Defense Minister.[8]

Between 2008 and 2011, Soriano was hired by billionaire entrepreneur Ruth Parasol and her then-husband Russ DeLeon to help resolve a criminal investigation that took place against them in the United States, for violating the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006. Following Soriano's involvement, Parasol's company, PartyGaming, eventually entered a non-prosecution agreement with the Justice Department.[4]

In 2010 Soriano set up a new company called USG Security, which replaced Universe Security Group. The company "provides security, intelligence and investigation services to private and corporate clients in the UK and around the world", according to its website.[3]

In 2013, Soriano founded "Walter Soriano London Management" ("WSLM", "WS London Management Limited"), a real estate company based in London.[9][10]

Soriano owns or co-owns other companies, including "Tov 7", "Tov 77", "Crossroads Property 2" and "London Western Ranch", companies that are engaged in real estate development and management in the UK.[11][12][13] He was also previously the owner of "Football Universe Limited" and acted as Diego Maradona's official European representative.[14]

In June 2019, it was reported that Soriano was asked to participate voluntarily in a closed-door hearing by the United States Senate on Russia's interference in the 2016 US presidential election.[15][16] However, the Senate's intelligence committee's report eventually concluded that Soriano introduced Russian businessmen Oleg Deripaska and Dmitri Rybolovlev to Israeli company Psy Group for private projects, and found no connection to the US elections.[17]

In March 2020, Soriano founded the Anti-Cyberbullying Association in the UK.[18] According to its website, the association is "working (together) to end cyberbullying" through legislation and regulation.[19]

In May 2020, Soriano joined the board of directors of PAVOCAT, a company that provides anti-corruption services to companies and governments.[20][21]

In 2000, Soriano was one of the founders of an association commemorating the name and memory of Jonathan Netanyahu, brother of Benjamin Netanyahu, who was killed in Operation Entebbe.[4] That same year, Soriano produced "Yoni", a film about Jonathan Netanyahu's life, directed by Semion Vinokur. The film incorporated archived materials from various sources, including the IDF video archives, the IDF spokesman archives, and the Netanyahu family.[22]

After Netanyahu lost the elections to Ehud Barak in 1999, he temporarily retired from politics and went into private business. During that time, according to Soriano, he worked with Netanyahu on a number of high-tech ventures in the United States. In 2002, Soriano recruited Netanyahu for paid lectures at fundraising evenings held in Mexico City for the "Lev Malka Organization", which helps patients from low-income families. The story was published by Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth, which claimed that Netanyahu was paid $180,000 for two days of work. Soriano confirmed to the newspaper that while living in Jerusalem, he had close ties with Netanyahu and that their relationship was based on “years of deep friendship, devoid of any external interests”.[23]  

In early 2018, Police Commissioner Roni Alsheikh was interviewed by Israeli journalist Ilana Dayan. In the interview, Alsheikh said, among other things, that private investigators are gathering information against Lahav 433 officers involved in investigating Netanyahu's cases. Media reports, starting with Raviv Drucker on Israeli Army Radio, raised the possibility that Walter Soriano was behind this activity, which both Soriano and Netanyahu denied. Netanyahu added that he has not met Soriano or talked to him since 2010. No proof of Soriano’s involvement was ever published.[4]

Lawsuits against media companies

In February 2018, Soriano filed a ILS500,000 defamation claim against Israeli Journalist Raviv Drucker, and in May 2019 filed a second claim for ILS580,000 against Drucker, together with the website HaAyin HaShevi'it, journalist Oren Persico and editor Shuki Tausig, claiming all four have been coordinating to publish stories to harm his reputation.[24]

In October 2019, Soriano sued Twitter in Dublin for defamation in order to "stop false and malicious allegations about him online".[25] In an interview for the Daily Telegraph in 2020, he stated that he plans to sue Google.[26]

By May 2021, Soriano has sued at least 10 journalists and news media worldwide, including U.S. based Forensic News which he sued in the U.K under section 9 of Defamation Act 2013 .[27][28] Entities whom Soriano have sued have called him a serial SLAPP-suiter.[29] HaAyin HaShevi'it reported that Soriano hadn't sued Forensic News in California because of California's legal protection of Special motion to strike.[30] Israeli newspaper TheMarker has stated that Soriano's attempts to stay out of the public eye via multiple defamation lawsuits has produced the opposite effect by way of the Streisand effect.[31]

References

  1. ^ "Secretive British philanthropist revealed to be global security expert Wa". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. Retrieved 21 September 2020.
  2. ^ "Walter Soriano, CEO of USG Security, shares expert insights into tackling COVID-19 business challenges". finance.yahoo.com. Retrieved 21 September 2020.
  3. ^ a b "USG Security - About Us". USG SECURITY. Retrieved 21 September 2020.
  4. ^ a b c d מענית, חן; שניידר, טל (12 February 2018). "חידת סוריאנו: מי האיש ששמו נקשר בסכסוך בין המפכ"ל לרה"מ" [The Soriano Mystery: Who is the man whose name was tied to the conflict between the chief of police and the prime minister]. Globes (in Hebrew). Retrieved 11 October 2020.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  5. ^ a b Mendick, Robert (26 January 2020). "I'm being smeared, says Diego Maradona's ex-agent in row over Senate inquiry into Russian election interference". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 11 October 2020.
  6. ^ "Walter Soriano - companies registration". Retrieved 11 October 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  7. ^ "Panama acts to avoid bottleneck". www.mundomaritimo.cl. Retrieved 11 October 2020.
  8. ^ Megiddo, Gur (12 August 2019). "עסקת המסוקים, החילוץ והמייל לנתניהו: הקשר בין גל הירש לאיש הסוד של ראש הממשלה" [The helicopter deal, the rescue and the email to Netanyahu: the connection between Gal Hirsch and the prime minister's secret man]. TheMarker (in Hebrew).
  9. ^ "WS LONDON MANAGEMENT LIMITED". Companies House Gov UK. Retrieved 21 September 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  10. ^ "About Us". Walter Soriano London Management. Retrieved 21 September 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  11. ^ "Companies House Gov UK". Retrieved 11 October 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  12. ^ "Walter Soriano - companies registration". Retrieved 12 September 2020.
  13. ^ "WS London Management website". Retrieved 12 September 2020.
  14. ^ Wollaston, Steve (4 June 2016). "Diego Maradona on what Roberto Di Matteo will bring to Aston Villa". BirminghamLive. Retrieved 11 October 2020.
  15. ^ Bertr, Natasha. "Senate Intelligence Committee summons mysterious British security consultant". POLITICO. Retrieved 11 October 2020.
  16. ^ "Report: US Senate asks to interview Israeli-Brit in connection with Russia probe". The Times of Israel. 19 June 2019.
  17. ^ "REPORT ON RUSSIAN ACTIVE MEASURES, CAMPAIGNS AND INTERFERENCE IN THE 2016 U.S. ELECTION, VOLUME 5" (PDF). U.S. Senate Select Committee of Intelligencce. 25 July 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  18. ^ "Businessman Walter Soriano Announces New UK Anti-Cyberbullying Initiative". in.style.yahoo.com. Retrieved 21 September 2020.
  19. ^ "About Us". The Anti-Cybrebullying Association.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  20. ^ "Walter Soriano joins PAVOCATs board of directors". International Business Times. 5 June 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  21. ^ "WALTER SORIANO Investigation And Litigation Support Expert". PAVOCAT Group. Retrieved 21 September 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  22. ^ "Walter Soriano Productions" produced a film about Jonathan Netanyahu. see:
    "Yoni: The Life of Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Netanyahu". YouTube. 13 January 2014.
  23. ^ Betito, Merav; Yehezkeli, Zadok (9 March 2010). "Million Shekel BiBI". Yedioth Ahronoth (in Hebrew).
  24. ^ Medido, Gur (17 December 2019). "וולטר סוריאנו תבע כדי להישאר אלמוני - והשיג בדיוק את ההפך" [Walter Soriano sued to remain anonymous - and achieved the opposite]. TheMarker (in Hebrew).
  25. ^ Tighe, Mark (6 October 2019). "Security expert Walter Soriano sues Twitter in Dublin for defamation". The Times.
  26. ^ Mendick, Robert (25 January 2020). "I'm being smeared, says Diego Maradona's ex-agent in row over Senate inquiry into Russian election interference". The Daily Telegraph.
  27. ^ פרסיקו, אורן. "סוריאנו מאיים בתביעה שלישית נגד "העין השביעית"". HaAyin HaShevi'it (in Hebrew). Retrieved 27 May 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  28. ^ Akerman, Kingsley Napley-Sian; Cattrall, Jessica. "Reputation and Media Quarterly Round-Up: Q1 2021 | Lexology". www.lexology.com. Retrieved 31 May 2021.
  29. ^ "לראשונה: תביעת לשון הרע על כתב הגנה | מעריב". Maariv (newspaper) (in Hebrew). Retrieved 27 May 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  30. ^ "וולטר סוריאנו, איש עסקים בתחום המודיעין הפרטי, מבקש שבסך הכל יניחו אותו לנפשו וימחקו את כל הפרסומים על אודותיו". העין השביעית (in Hebrew). Retrieved 31 May 2021.
  31. ^ "וולטר סוריאנו תבע כדי להישאר אלמוני - והשיג בדיוק את ההפך". TheMarker (in Hebrew). Retrieved 27 May 2021.
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