Democratic Party Donor Held Overseas

WASHINGTON — Oilman and controversial Democratic donor Roger Tamraz has been arrested in the Republic of Georgia on an Interpol arrest warrant stemming from embezzlement charges in Lebanon, a U.S. official said Friday.

The State Department confirmed that Tamraz, whose attempts to win Clinton administration support for an oil pipeline venture are being investigated by Congress and a grand jury, was arrested in the Georgian capital, Tbilisi.

“I understand he is being detained,” said State Department spokeswoman Phyllis Young. She said she had no further details about the circumstances of the recent arrest.

But another U.S. official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Tamraz was arrested on an Interpol warrant stemming from 1989 charges filed in Lebanon.

A substantial Democratic Party donor and frequent White House visitor in 1995 and 1996, Tamraz has been sought by a Lebanese court on 1989 charges of embezzling $200 million from a collapsed Beirut bank he once headed. He has denied the charges.

Tamraz’s White House visits, which included a dinner and movie with President Clinton, took place despite objections from the National Security Council staff.

The CIA’s inspector general is also investigating an alleged attempt by former Democratic Party Chairman Donald Fowler to pressure the agency to remove unfavorable information on Tamraz from reports it sent about him to the NSC.

Fowler has denied allegations that he pressured the CIA and Nancy Soderberg, a senior NSC aide, to help get Tamraz access to the White House.

Tamraz, a U.S. citizen who lives in New York City, has contended that the Lebanese criminal charges are politically motivated because of his dealings with Israeli businessmen.

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Despite a warrant issued by Interpol, the international police agency, Tamraz has said he has been allowed to travel freely throughout the world. The U.S. government has not honored a Lebanese request to extradite Tamraz.

Tamraz gave $72,000 to the Democratic National Committee and $100,000 to the Virginia Democratic Party.

A federal grand jury is investigating whether Clinton administration officials sought to help Tamraz promote his plans to construct pipelines to carry oil from the Caspian Sea region to Turkey.

Georgia is near the region where oil companies have been considering investing billions of dollars to develop production capacity.

Tamraz briefly told Clinton about his pipeline plans at a March 26, 1996, dinner for donors.