Terrorism via Trump...?

As some of you know, I worked for a while on a book about Trump's women. The chapter on Melania deals, in part, with an unusual Italian businessman named Paulo Zampolli, who introduced Melania to Donald Trump. Zampolli ran the agency which employed Melania.

The more one looks into the guy, the stranger he seems. Basically, Zampolli went to work for Trump, and may still be part of the team. (Sources are unclear.) He also became an ambassador for the island nation of Dominica, where Trump has little-noticed -- but very important -- interests.

All of this links up to a major scandal involving passports. Nobody is paying attention to this scandal right now -- but one day soon, it could blow up in our faces. Literally.

Here's an excerpt from my book (which I may or may not finish). I've left out the footnotes. If you want to know the source for any specific claim, just ask.

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In 2005 – the year of Melania’s marriage to Donald – Zampolli signed on with the Trump organization and embarked on a career in high-end real estate, selling luxury units in Trump Park Avenue and finding well-heeled prospects for a Brazilian project called Villa Trump. Of his new hire, Trump said: “I’ve known Paolo for a long time. He’s got a great imagination. And in real estate, if you don’t have an imagination, it’s not going to work.”

Soon thereafter, Zampolli brought his famed imagination to the small Caribbean nation of Dominica, where he has played a leading (albeit somewhat amorphous) role in the creation of a building project unprecedented in the island’s history. The 160 room Cabrits Resort Kempinski -- which seems to be backed by a Dubai-based firm called Range Developments -- is unfinished at this writing, although it is scheduled to be completed in 2018.

One aspect of this operation has raised many an eyebrow: For $220,000 or thereabouts, foreign investors qualify for citizenship and a passport.

Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit -- whose millionaire lifestyle belies his modest official salary -- openly brags that his nation’s Citizen-by-Investment unit has brought big money into this small country. Investors need not reside on the island to take advantage of its very low taxes: “In Dominica, there are no taxes on worldwide income, capital gains and inheritance.” Investors may even be able to complement their new passport with a long-term United States visa.

Why (you may ask) would anyone want more than one passport? Historically, multiple passports have proven very useful to spies, mobsters, and anyone else involved in international skullduggery. Paul Manafort obtained three passports. This tactic confers plausible deniability: Someone on a secret mission -- for example, a mission to meet with Russian agents in the Czech Republic -- could travel on a Dominican passport and later use his United States passport to “prove” that the trip never occurred.

This tactic is particularly helpful to Muslims facing travel restrictions. Do not be surprised if future Arab terrorists come to the United States on a Caribbean passport.

So far, I’ve been unable to determine if Zampolli worked for the Trump organization as the Cabritz project got underway; at this point in the Italian’s life, his exact relationship with Donald Trump becomes rather mysterious. Trump owns Caribusiness Investments SRL, based in the Dominican Republic, which has no discernible link to Cabrits. (One can imagine the scandal if Trump had any connection to a scheme to dodge taxes or to “game” the U.S. visa system.) Even so, the Trump family’s interest in another proposed Dominican project – a real estate development called Cap Cana -- has led some to posit a potentially impeachable conflict of interest.

Inevitably, there is a Russian connection.

The Dominican Republic is a major magnet for Russian tourists and the Russian mob, according to public reports and records. And it also appears Trump in the past has actively marketed his property holdings in the D.R. to Russian investors.

Fashion photographer Baruch Vega, who has done dangerous undercover work for the FBI, CIA and DEA, confirms this view:

“It’s true that Russian tourism and the mafia are huge in the Dominican Republic,” Vega says. “The generals [the military and police] and the government in the Dominican Republic are extremely corrupt, so much so that cocaine from the Dominican Republic is cheaper than from any other place, including Colombia.”

Oddly, the Cabrits project led the Skerrit government to appoint Paolo Zampolli, proud son of Italy, as Dominica’s ambassador to the United Nations. Lennox Linton, a Skerrit opponent, has demanded a full explanation of this appointment, which, says Linton, provides “cover for his [Zampolli’s] murky, private dealings.”

Zampolli was also appointed Ambassador for Oceans and Seas. Much like Ghislaine Maxwell (another Trump friend), Zampolli has developed a surprising enthusiasm for oceanography and environmentalism. One cannot help but wonder about the depth of his commitment, given the fact that, for years, his ambassadorial website has proudly advertised a group called “We are the Oceans” – a group seemingly without officers, members, an address, stated goals or any kind of resume. (They do have a graphic. It’s lovely.) It may be useful to compare Zampolli's "group" with Maxwell's. Whatever else you may think of her, her oceanographic organization does legitimate work.

In 2016, Zampolli decided to heighten aquatic awareness by donating a large metal shark sculpture to the United Nations, which was displayed in the UN building’s lobby for a year, then placed in storage.

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And that's all I've written so far. The final version of this chapter will no doubt be rewritten and expanded.

Why (you may be wondering) did I publish this section now? Because it occurs to me that the Republicans might gain immensely from a new terror attack. If we get hit, pay special attention to the terrorists' passports.

As for Zampolli's oceanographic venture: I have no idea what that is all about, but I have a hard time believing that the guy suddenly became an environmentalist. Something else must be going on. Why did Paoli Zampolli and Ghislaine Maxwell (both Trump associates) develop this fascination with the sea?