The US Department of Justice delayed a Securities and Exchange Commission investigation into the affairs of alleged fraudster Sir Allen Stanford by at least five months, a report by the inspector-general of the SEC has found.

The delay, from July to December 2008, followed a three-year SEC probe. It culminated in the SEC filing fraud charges in February 2009, and then a criminal indictment in June. Sir Allen has pleaded not guilty and is in jail awaiting trial.