I am astonished with the savvy displayed by Magbanua & her lawyers. Despite the heavy evidences, circumstantial and otherwise, they appear to play and win a high stake Prisoners dilemma with repeat moves! Whatever the outcome of this case, it has the potential of going into Game Theory textbooks.
I am not surprised but still in awe with the strategic and communication skills of David Oscar Markus. His webpage says it all about him: Markus/Moss is a nationally-recognized trial and appellate boutique law firm known for taking on and winning difficult criminal defense cases. The Firms lawyers accept only a small number of high-stakes cases at any given time so that they can dedicate their full attention to every client. The Firms founder, David Oscar Markus, is a Harvard-educated lawyer who has been described as wickedly smart and a terrific trial lawyer. His clients say that he is the whole package and a creative, courageous and tenacious courtroom advocate. One recent publication said: David Markus is amazing, not only because of the strength and genius of his arguments and motions, but also because of his brilliant and astonishing performances during the hearings. Additionally, he radiates so much confidence, and that in itself soothes the usual anguish and anxiety that you endure during these types of situations. Last but not least, he is such a great human being.
Perhaps sarcastically, I venture to say that Canadian lawyer & law professor Dan Markels life matters also in Florida! His former colleagues at FSU, the State Attorneys, the judge of this case, and his family members are perhaps eager to uncover the unvarnished truth of the case. However, they have encountered formidable adversaries in the persons of David Oscar Markus & Christopher DeCoste.
Aside the limitations of what are legally permissible when inquisitively searching the source of large lump sum payments, it is much easier to hide assets than to uncover assets, even with the help of almighty FBI! To put into perspectives, (a) Magbanua is of Filipino origin and possibly still has Filipino close contact persons, (b) cash does not have paper trails, and (c) all lawyer DeCoste has to show is this cash is not from the Adelsons!
Misappropriation of funds is the main cause of asset tracing. Asset origination such as in the Magbanua case is the other large reason. I looked up what professionals such as Deloitte Forensic say about the topic:
Asset recovery is all about moving quickly. If steps are not put in place early, the prospect of finding the money, even if you can trace it, gets more uncertain as each day passes. (Deloitte Forensic)
Resultantly, it is difficult to identify assets located across multiple jurisdictions and moreover it is problematic to obtain a favorable decree and enforce the recovery claim in these international jurisdictions. (Deloitte Forensic)
Our Asset Tracing and Recovery experts will work with you and your legal adviser to attempt to recover misappropriated funds, quickly and discreetly. (Deloitte Forensic)
It is a repeat move game, i.e. sooner or later the initial lump sum will dry out and more cash has to come, but I doubt if the State Attorneys of Florida would ever have the savvy and the means to uncover such asset traces.