CORUSCANT (INB) - The Imperial Security Bureau (ISB) released a statement today announcing the successful arrest and execution of Zann operative Kos Van'lin, revealed in intelligence reports by the codename 'Niko'. The infiltrator serving in the Imperial Army was sentenced to death after Imperial courts rendered a prompt guilty verdict when presented with the substantial evidence accumulated through counter-intelligence operations.

Imperial evidence tendered to the court shows that the significant breakthrough for the small Anti-Zann Taskforce was a direct result of ongoing internal struggles within the somewhat nebulous group of criminals. Reports demonstrated that leadership within the group had become increasingly dissatisfied with what was termed the 'egotistical and delusional' dominance of the criminal syndicate by Ximaro Jix. In response to the growing dissatisfaction with his approach, several of Jix's closest allies began to question his micromanagement of the group. These detractors were silenced, however, including Andy Longshot, head of the Pressure Pirates sub-group, and long-time friend of Jix. The violent murder of any opposition to Jix's schemes incited many "patched" members of the criminal organization to become informants for Imperial Intelligence; notably Lilitu Ningaz, former second-in-command of the Zann Consortium and widow of Longshot.

"The Zann Consortium is a house of cards," an anonymous informant said. "Ximaro presents it as an impenetrable fortress and continues to thrive because he either kills or politically assassinates anyone who questions him. As soon as people realise how unstable Ximaro really is and how quickly he turns on his friends for so much as questioning him, the Consortium will collapse. Several of our most successful members have recently ended up dead the moment they served [Jix's] purpose, and members of the conglomerate who are not directly part of Zann are treated like dirt."

Included in the evidence packet from Imperial Intelligence, intercepted communications revealed secretive pacts between the Consortium and members of the Galactic Alliance such as the obtusely shady Krath Dynasty. After being accused of playing multiple sides in conflicts and sponsoring small-scale terrorist activities only a few weeks ago with the Breviin Crusaders incidents, the Krath Dynasty finds itself in an embarrassing position once again as its dealings with the Zann Consortium were exposed. After a Zann heist that saw the loss of most of the inventory from Koros Spaceworks, the Krath were swift to negotiate a Non-Aggression Pact with Ximaro Jix due to fears that Krath security was not able to stop similar thefts in future. To hide the pact from public eye and eliminate any suspicion of its existence, the Krath publicly demonized the Zann Consortium and placed bounties on Zann leaders at the suggestion of Jix himself.

The non-aggression pact was not the summation of the Krath-Zann relationship however, and this soon grew into lucrative business deals and the exchange of prisoners as the Krath attempted to exert influence on Zann to focus their attacks in a manner that benefited Krath political and military machinations. With a criminal organization attacking the Galactic Alliance and undermining the rule of law wherever possible, people were quickly reminded of similar reports of the Krath Dynasty conducting deals with the Eidola pirates against Galactic Alliance interests. Shockingly, in conspiracy to cover up their ally's transgressions and keep the fracturing Galactic Alliance together, New Republic leadership coerced the senate into removing the infamous Eidolan pirates from their list of criminal organisations, lifting the historic trade ban imposed on Eidola, and shocking many Republic citizens when the vote passed despite the common knowledge of Eidola being involved in the capture and demands for ransom for the executed Chief of State, Cheda Quche.

Krath involvement and support for Zann was likely to further strain Galactic Alliance relations with the public attention drawn to the recent murder of Gamba Jaboli by Zann. However, while the Republic News Network paid homage to the deceased worker, the court documents also reveal that Gamba Jaboli had actually been working for Zann. This confusing turn of events was used to demonstrate the curious attitude that Jix holds towards Zann workers, where many find that they are summarily executed either when their operations are complete, or when Jix believes their deaths will further his own agenda better.

A former member of the Krath Dynasty's leadership Council and defector to the Galactic Empire, Phaedra Thester, stated "[The Krath] have time and time again sacrificed their identity and soul for financial gain. The core religion of the Krath has been sacrificed in order to appease to the Jedi, and unable to actually build a military for itself, the government relies on Mandalorians to staff its defence forces. They manipulated Nova crystal prices whenever it suited them, and even became so greedy they stopped producing nova crystals at all and instead just registered people with a kind of 'digital nova crystal' to cut their costs even further. Seeing it all from the inside, I really saw how the Krath had lost its way and just became about greed and power."

Imperial Intelligence has authorized the public release of entire sections of the evidence provided to the Imperial Courts in an effort to reveal the truth about the Zann Consortium and hamper their criminal operations in areas outside of the Empire. The Empire's cooperation with other at-risk governments and corporations has already resulted in the arrest and execution of Sirius Constantine, a member of Zann's inner circle who had been dispatched to the neutral corporation Sienar Fleet Systems, with more revelations expected to follow.

Director of Imperial Intelligence, Elvira Falston, did not stop to provide a briefing to press at the Imperial Palace, however was quoted as responding to questions about the recent victories over Zann. "Their success relies predominantly on their ability to convince someone to flip their allegiance under the promise of riches, fame, and family. For the desperate few thinking about believing those sweet promises, you should take note that Zann's kill list is filled with more of their own members than anything else; it's a paranoid group that places zero value on any life except Ximaro's own."