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The War Profiteers - War Crimes,
Kidnappings & Torture |
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December 17th,
2010 - Ex-Blackwater International Sold |
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Ex-Blackwater International Sold From Agence France Presse December 17, 2010 New York - Private US
security firm Xe, formerly known as Blackwater International, has been bought
by a group of investors, they announced on Friday. New York-based USTC Holdings
said it will acquire Xe and its core operating subsidiaries, but did not
disclose the price or terms of the agreement in a statement. USTC Holdings is an investor
consortium led by private equity firms Forte Capital Advisors and Manhattan
Partners. Xe's current owner Eric Prince,
will sell his entire stake in the company and "will not be involved in
the management or operation of the company," USTC Holdings said. "The company going
forward will be managed by a board appointed by the equity owners which will
include independent, unaffiliated directors." The New York Times reported
Friday the sale came after the State Department threatened to stop awarding
contracts to the company as long as it was owned by Prince, a former Navy
SEAL. The company, once the best
known security contractor in Iraq and Afghanistan, has come under pressure
since Blackwater guards were accused of killing 17 civilians in Baghdad in
2007. Prince put the company up
for sale in June and moved his family to Abu Dhabi. The Times said people
involved in the negotiations said the sale was worth 200 million dollars, but
Prince will receive payments into the future depending on the company's
financial performance. A lead investor is Jason De
Yonker of Forte Capital Advisors, who helped Prince develop a business plan
after he founded the company in 1997, and negotiated its first training
contracts. Copyright © 2010 AFP. External link: http://tinyurl.com/35h5plr |