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In June 2014 Dagens Næringsliv published an article in which the newspaper claimed that Jostein Eikeland had on many occasions borrowed money from the narco trafficker Gjermund Cappelen in order to finance Alevo. Apparently many millions of NOK had passed through the accounts of DLA Piper (where Tord Eide worked at the time) either to go to or from Cappelen. In the process Cappelen had also obtained shares in Alevo worth over NOK 5 million.

Alevo “Board member since two or three months” (maybe for a Norwegian entity?) Eric Cameron tells the newspaper that Alevo and Eikeland never suspected that Cappelen was lending out illegal money. Cameron explains that Cappelen appeared to Clydemont and all other parties as a big businessman with an interest in investing in startups.

The article also goes on to explain that Cappelen became a shareholder as part of a complicated three party transaction between him, Jostein Eikeland and Berth Milton Jr.

The journalists also produced a report on the methods used to launder money. In it (pg 11) an email from Tord Eide is shown with the remark that transactions and documents were construed in such a way as to give plausible explanations at a later time but which do not necessarily reflect the reality of the situation. The authors suggest that in such circumstances it is the lack of full documentation that is the documentation.

The report goes on to explain how DLA Piper (whilst Tord Eide was working there) was central in partaking in a three-party series of payments between Eikeland’s BVI company, Alevo in Switzerland and the USA, as well as Norwegian and foreign investors. The payments were for millions of NOK and also included Cappelen.

The reporters also tried to have questions answered by Alevo. Eventually Alevo responded through their paid representatives, two lawyers from the law firm Wiersholm, an adviser from First House and a PR adviser from Axicom.

Already in 2010 Clydemont Finance Limited also appears to have been funded by United Nordic Alliance Investment Company (“UNAICO”) which was a Pyramid scheme based out of Hong Kong. That entity was to be given 8% of the shares in “Alevo Plc” in return for a €5 million loan.

Other relevant sources of information surrounding this are available at nouw.com & rusletter.com.