American charged in billion-kroner fraud case fails to appear in court

A high-stakes fraud trial in Denmark has been complicated by the absence of one of the key American defendants. Luke Beneville McGee failed to appear at the Glostrup Court for the proceedings related to an alleged scheme that defrauded the Danish treasury of 1.1 billion kroner (approximately $160 million USD).

McGee was one of three American defendants who had agreed to deposit their passports with the Danish embassy in Washington D.C. before traveling to Denmark for the trial. While two of the Americans, Matthew Richard Stein and Jerome Lhôte, complied and arrived in Denmark, McGee did not. Consequently, the court formally separated McGee's case on Tuesday morning. He will now face trial at a later, unspecified date, and an arrest warrant has been issued against him in absentia.

The legal proceedings are part of a larger investigation into a complex fraud involving dividend tax refunds. Foreign nationals allegedly managed to obtain billions of kroner from Danish tax authorities to which they were not entitled. In total, six individuals are indicted in this case. However, the trial is already proceeding without two defendants: McGee and British national Graham Horn, who has yet to be extradited to Denmark.

While Denmark can now pursue an extradition process for McGee, Danish broadcaster DR reports that this could prove challenging. The United States typically does not extradite its own citizens for prosecution abroad. Horn and the three Americans are accused of aggravated fraud totaling 1.1 billion kroner. Two other British defendants, Rajen Shah and Anupe Dhorajiwala, face charges related to fraud amounting to 306 million kroner. All defendants have pleaded not guilty.