Brian Hynes

The seemingly never-ending flow of negative information that is passed our way about Bermuda-based Stirling Cooke Brown Holdings Limited continued this month when our attention was drawn to Page 43 of the 1994 'Wishful Thinking' report published by a US congressional sub-committee chaired by John Dingell. The content of this page formed part of a look at the illegal activities of Carlos Miro, who received a lengthy prison sentence in the US for insurance fraud in connection with his Louisiana-based company, Anglo-American Insurance, which also had a UK arm.

As the share price of Stirling Cooke Brown Holdings Limited continues to plummet for reasons that appear unrelated to the general market slide, Inside Bermuda has uncovered fresh evidence that casts an extraordinarily negative light over the company and its main business partner, the Clarendon insurance group.

Stirling Cooke Brown Holdings, a publicly-listed company over which there are several question marks, has reported a profit of $4 million for the three months ended March 31, 1998 - a 41 per cent increase on the same period a year earlier. The company reported that revenues went up by 39 per cent to $19.9 million, while reporting that expenses also increased by 39 per cent to $15 million.

An accountant who participated in one of the world's best-known insurance frauds is currently working for Bermuda-based insurance group Stirling Cooke Brown Holdings as a financial accountant, we can disclose. Brian J. Hynes, former managing director of Carlos Miro-owned Anglo-American International Reinsurance Co., is employed by Stirling Cooke at its London office.