Oct. 29, 2010 at 6:43 p.m.
Filed under:
Chicago executives,
Crime,
Criminal charges
By Ameet Sachdev
Conrad Black, the wealthy Canadian who was chairman of a Chicago-based newspaper empire, may be headed back to prison after two of his crimes were upheld on appeal.
The 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago reviewed Black’s 2007 fraud conviction for a second time, after the Supreme Court called it into question in June. In a unanimous ruling Friday, the appellate court affirmed Black’s guilty verdicts on one count of defrauding Hollinger International Inc. and obstruction of justice but vacated two of his fraud convictions. Get the full story »
By Reuters
U.S. prosecutors asked a federal judge to seal the courtroom for part of the upcoming criminal trial of a former Goldman Sachs Group Inc. computer programmer, an effort to protect the secrecy of the bank’s high-frequency trading platform.
Prosecutors said in a court filing that there is a “compelling interest in favor of privacy” for Goldman in the trial of the former employee, Sergey Aleynikov. Get the full story »
Oct. 25, 2010 at 7:54 a.m.
Filed under:
Crime,
Fraud
By Associated Press
Office Depot Inc.’s Chairman and CEO Steve Odland is stepping down by mutual agreement with the board.
The disclosure on Monday that Odland has resigned comes only days after the company, Odland and another executive agreed to pay civil penalties tied to Office Depot’s disclosure of corporate information to a select group of investors and analysts.
Oct. 22, 2010 at 2:59 p.m.
Filed under:
Chicago executives,
Crime,
Criminal charges,
Retail
By Brian Cox, Special to the Tribune | The lawyer for a Walgreen Co. executive charged with DUI for the second time in 13 months said today he’s sure his client will be cleared. Get the full story »
Oct. 13, 2010 at 1:05 p.m.
Filed under:
Chicago executives,
Education,
Fraud
From Crain’s Chicago Business | Hedge fund operator Steven Stevanovich, a University of Chicago trustee who once donated $7 million to the school, has been accused in a lawsuit of reaping at least $323 million in “false profits” by participating in a Ponzi scheme. Stevanovich’s attorney and a spokesman for the U. of C. did not immediately return calls. Get the full story>>
Oct. 12, 2010 at 12:32 p.m.
Filed under:
Banking,
Crime,
Fraud
By Dow Jones Newswires-Wall Street Journal
The next time you pull up to an ATM, take a closer look at the machine. Does it look a little clunkier than usual?
Look too at what’s around you: Are there mirrors? Is there a brochure-holder over your shoulder? Does it look like there might be a false panel or an extra light bar attached to the machine? Get the full story »
Oct. 7, 2010 at 1:34 p.m.
Filed under:
Banking,
Entertainment,
Fraud
By Reuters
Larry Hagman, the actor who played the villainous J.R. Ewing in 1980s TV show “Dallas,” became a victim of fraud and misconduct at the hands of Citigroup Inc., a FINRA arbitration panel ruled this week.
The total award includes $10 million in punitive damages that Citi must pay to charities selected by Hagman, $1.1 million in compensatory damages and nearly $440,000 in legal fees. Get the full story »
Oct. 6, 2010 at 12:45 p.m.
Filed under:
Criminal charges,
Government,
Taxes
By Gregory Karp | American Tax Relief LLC, which claims in TV ads that it can reduce your tax debt, has been shut down after bilking consumers nationwide out of more than $60 million, the Federal Trade Commission alleged Wednesday.
“For people having a tough time paying their taxes, the last thing they need is to lose more money to a fraud,” said David C. Vladeck, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. Get the full story »
Sep. 30, 2010 at 6:44 p.m.
Filed under:
Crime
By McClatchy Tribune Newspapers
Onetime Chicago hedge fund manager Gregory Bell was sentenced Thursday to five years in prison for his role in propping up the Tom Petters Ponzi scheme as it began to unravel more than two years ago. Get the full story »
Sep. 29, 2010 at 5:55 a.m.
Filed under:
Crime,
Fraud,
Litigation,
Media,
Newspapers
From Canada’s National Post | Attorney’s for former Sun-Times publisher and media mogul Conrad Black will appear in Chicago’s 7th Circuit Court of Appeals to argue that Black’s fraud convictions should be tossed. Black was released from prison after serving two years of a 6.5-year sentence for breaking the so-called “honest services” law.
Get the full story >>
Sep. 15, 2010 at 10:26 p.m.
Filed under:
Crime,
Fraud
By Associated Press
Tearful, angry victims of a $77 million Ponzi scheme that targeted hundreds of often working-class Italian-Americans crowded into a Chicago courtroom Thursday to tell their stories before a judge handed the convicted swindler a maximum 23-year prison term.
The federal judge rejected prosecutors’ recommendation of a 12 1/2 year sentence for Frank Castaldi — in part because he had reported the two-decade scam himself — saying that would let the 57-year-old accountant and businessman off too easy, given the lives he ruined.
Sep. 14, 2010 at 2:11 p.m.
Filed under:
Crime,
Defense,
Fraud
By Reuters
A former body armor magnate, who supplied the U.S. military and law enforcement agencies, and another executive were found guilty by a jury on Tuesday of orchestrating a $190 million fraud. Get the full story »
Sep. 13, 2010 at 3:30 p.m.
Filed under:
Crime,
Fraud,
Investigations
By Associated Press
A judge has sentenced the owner of a suburban Chicago printer repair company to 10 years in federal prison in a $28 million Ponzi scheme.
In a Monday statement, the U.S. attorney’s office said Matthew Scott was also ordered to pay nearly $5 million in restitution. Prosecutors accused the owner of Northlake-based Gelsco of swindling around 75 people. Some lost their life savings.
Sep. 3, 2010 at 5:49 p.m.
Filed under:
Crime,
Energy,
Fraud,
Government
By Dow Jones Newswires-Wall Street Journal
A federal appellate court judge on Friday turned down former Enron Corp. executive Jeffrey Skilling’s request for bail pending the continuing judicial review of his 2006 conspiracy and fraud conviction. The former Enron chief executive is serving a 24-year prison sentence.
Get the full story »
Sep. 3, 2010 at 5:31 p.m.
Filed under:
Fraud,
Litigation,
Manufacturing
By Associated Press
Toymaker Mattel Inc. has filed a lawsuit alleging MGA Entertainment fraudulently transferred hundreds of millions of dollars to keep Mattel from collecting on anticipated judgments and to defraud other creditors.
The suit filed Wednesday in Los Angeles County Superior Court alleges MGA transferred $430 million in dividends and other assets to its chief executive Isaac Larian, his family members and various trusts between 2004 and 2008 to make the company appear insolvent and prevent MGA’s creditors, including Mattel, from cashing in. Get the full story »
