Auffenberg case to be moved to Caribbean

Interesting turn of events in the Auffenberg case:

EAST ST. LOUIS — A federal judge on Thursday ordered the conspiracy and tax evasion trial involving Metro East car dealer Jamie Auffenberg and others moved from East St. Louis to the Caribbean.

Federal prosecutors have alleged that Auffenberg and others illegally funneled millions through tax shelters by falsely claiming to be residents of the U.S. Virgin Islands and conducting business there.

Lawyers for Auffenberg and the others have denied that. They also asked U.S. District Judge Michael J. Reagan to move the trial to the U.S. Virgin Islands, saying the case should be tried there for a variety of reasons, including the expense of flying hundreds of possible witnesses from the islands to East St. Louis.