Outside court, Brosnahan repeated: "Mr. Hsu is not here and we don't know where Mr. Hsu is. . . . We expected him to be here."
After the hearing, Sivilla said that Hsu held a U.S. passport, but that he was not sure whether Hsu was in the country. "I would imagine he has the capability" of fleeing the United States, Sivilla said. "We don't know if he has his passport."
Hsu, a Hong Kong native, is believed to have returned there when he fled the first time.
Multiple sources said he has described himself as a producer of knockoffs of high-end clothing.
He reportedly bought designer suits and accessories for duplication in China and resale in the United States, though concrete evidence of his business affairs has proved difficult to find.
"We believed the amount of bail was appropriate," Sivilla said, adding that Hsu's failure to appear was "disappointing."
"There are some things in motion," Sivilla said when asked about what authorities were doing to find Hsu.
But when asked whether they had leads regarding Hsu's location, Sivilla said: "I wish that were true."
With offices in Los Angeles and New York, the crisis communications firm of Sitrick and Co. is a prominent player. Its slogan is: "If you don't tell your story, someone else will tell it for you." On Wednesday, however, Sitrick spokesmen refused to discuss Hsu.
Federal investigators are looking into Hsu's fundraising -- Democratic candidates in national, state and local contests have received his support -- and the possibility that he may have reimbursed some donors; reimbursing campaign contributors is a violation of federal law.
The fact that Hsu was a fugitive from a felony fraud charge growing out of a $1-million Ponzi scheme, which was first disclosed by The Times, sent shivers through Democratic political circles as well as such institutions as the New School in New York, on whose board Hsu served.
Some at first defended Hsu, then said they would or might return his contributions or donate them to charity.
Hsu claimed his legal problems arose from misunderstandings over a failed business venture. He denied intentionally skipping the 1992 court hearing or realizing he had pleaded no contest to a felony.
Wednesday, however, as news spread that Hsu had again failed to appear in court, politicians and others who had benefited from his largesse adopted a more guarded tone.
