Για απάτη σε βάρος δήμων, κοινοτήτων της χώρας τρία στελέχη της UBS.
Τρία πρώην στελέχη της ελβετικής τράπεζας UBS κρίθηκαν ένοχα την Παρασκευή από δικαστήριο
στις Ηνωμένες Πολιτείες για απάτη σε βάρος δήμων, κοινοτήτων και κομητειών της
χώρας, όπως ανέφερε σε ανακοίνωση του το αμερικανικό υπουργείου Δικαιοσύνης.
Οι Πίτερ Γκαβάμι, Γκάρι Χάιντς και Μάικλ Ουέλτι κατηγορούνταν ότι είχαν συνωμοτήσει από κοινού με διάφορα χρηματοπιστωτικά ιδρύματα και έναν χρηματομεσίτη και προέβαιναν σε απάτες στις δημοπρασίες τίτλων δήμων, κοινοτήτων, κομητειών, μη κερδοσκοπικών οργανώσεων και άλλων, σύμφωνα με την ανακοίνωση. Στόχος ήταν να «αυξηθεί ο αριθμός και η αποδοτικότητα των τοποθετήσεων στην UBS», σύμφωνα με το κείμενο.
Οι Πίτερ Γκαβάμι, Γκάρι Χάιντς και Μάικλ Ουέλτι κατηγορούνταν ότι είχαν συνωμοτήσει από κοινού με διάφορα χρηματοπιστωτικά ιδρύματα και έναν χρηματομεσίτη και προέβαιναν σε απάτες στις δημοπρασίες τίτλων δήμων, κοινοτήτων, κομητειών, μη κερδοσκοπικών οργανώσεων και άλλων, σύμφωνα με την ανακοίνωση. Στόχος ήταν να «αυξηθεί ο αριθμός και η αποδοτικότητα των τοποθετήσεων στην UBS», σύμφωνα με το κείμενο.
Οι κατηγορίες αφορούν ενέργειες των τριών ανδρών από
τον Μάρτιο του 2001 ως το Νοέμβριο του 2006. Οι κατηγορίες ενάντια στους τρεις
άνδρες είχαν απαγγελθεί τον Δεκέμβριο του 2010.
Οι απατεώνες μπορεί να βρίσκονται ακόμη και εκεί οπου κανείς δεν
το αναμένει. Επίσης μπορεί να βρίσκονται πολύ ψηλά και να εξυπηρετούν
θεσμούς που κανείς δεν θα ανέμενε ότι εμπεριέχουν τόση διαφθορά.
Το υπουργείο Δικαιοσύνης εκτιμά ότι η απάτη στέρησε
σε εθνική κλίμακα «εκατομμύρια δολάρια» από κοινότητες, δήμους, κομητείες κ.ά.,
που κανονικά θα χρησιμοποιούνταν για δημόσια έργα όπως η ανέγερση σχολείων και
νοσοκομείων ή η οδοποιία.
Συνολικά 20 άνθρωποι έχουν διωχθεί στο πλαίσιο της
υπόθεσης, εκ των οποίων, περιλαμβανομένων των τριών που καταδικάστηκαν χθες, οι
19 έχουν καταδικαστεί ή ομολογήσει την ενοχή τους, σύμφωνα με το αμερικανικό
υπουργείο Δικαιοσύνης.
Πηγή: ΑΜΠΕ - Εφημερίδα Καθημερινή
Ευχαριστώ τον φίλο Σ.
Δείτε παρακάτω την επίσημη ανακοίνωση του Υπουργείου
Δικαιοσύνης.
Προσέξτε στο τέλος της ανακοίνωσης πως καλείται όποιοσδήποτε διαθέτει σχετικές με απάτες πληροφορίες , να επικοινωνήσει με οποιαδήποτε από τις Αρχές που αναφέρονται.Κάτι αντίστοιχο έχει ξεκινήσει επιτέλους να συμβαίνει και στην Ελλάδα , προκειμένου να περιορισθούν η διαφθορά , η εγκληματικότητα και οι απατεώνες (λαμόγια). Καποιοι χάνουν τον ύπνο τους.
Department of Justice
Office of Public Affairs
Three Former UBS Executives
Convicted for Frauds Involving Contracts Related to the Investment of Municipal
Bond Proceeds
WASHINGTON – A federal jury
in New York City
today convicted three former financial services executives for their
participation in frauds related to bidding for contracts for the investment of
municipal bond proceeds and other municipal finance contracts , the Department
of Justice announced.
Peter Ghavami, Gary Heinz
and Michael Welty, all former UBS AG executives, were found guilty on
conspiracy and fraud charges in the U.S. District Court in New York City . Ghavami was found guilty on
two counts of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of substantive wire
fraud. Heinz was found guilty on three counts of conspiracy to commit wire
fraud and two counts of substantive wire fraud. Welty was found guilty on three
counts of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Heinz was found not guilty on one
count of witness tampering and Welty was found not guilty on one count of
substantive wire fraud.
The trial began on July 30,
2012. Ghavami, Heinz and Welty were initially indicted on Dec. 9, 2010.
“For years, these executives
corrupted the competitive bidding process and defrauded municipalities across
the country out of money for important public works projects,” said Scott D.
Hammond, Deputy Assistant Attorney General of the Antitrust Division’s criminal
enforcement program. “Today’s convictions demonstrate that the division is
committed to holding accountable those who seek to unfairly and illegally
undermine competitive markets.”
According to evidence
presented at trial, while employed at UBS, Ghavami, Heinz and Welty
participated in separate fraud conspiracies and schemes with various financial
institutions and with a broker, at various time periods from as early as March
2001 until at least November 2006. These financial institutions, or providers,
offered a type of contract—known as an investment agreement— to state, county
and local governments and agencies, and not-for-profit entities, throughout the
United States. The public entities were seeking to invest money from a variety
of sources, primarily the proceeds of municipal bonds that they had issued to
raise money for, among other things, public projects. Public entities typically
hire a broker to assist them in investing their money and to conduct a
competitive bidding process to determine the winning provider.
According to evidence
presented at trial, while acting as providers, Ghavami, Heinz and Welty, with
their provider and broker co-conspirators, corrupted the bidding process for
more than a dozen investment agreements to increase the number and
profitability of the agreements awarded to UBS.
At other times, while acting as brokers, Ghavami, Heinz, Welty and their
co-conspirators arranged for UBS to receive kickbacks in exchange for
manipulating the bidding process and steering investment agreements to certain
providers.
Ghavami, Heinz and Welty
deprived the municipalities of competitive interest rates for the investment of
tax-exempt bond proceeds that were to be used by municipalities to refinance
outstanding debt and for various public works projects, such as for building or
repairing schools, hospitals and roads. Evidence at trial established that they
cost municipalities around the country and the U.S. Treasury millions of dollars.
During the trial, the
government presented specific evidence relating to approximately 26 corrupted
bids and approximately 76 recorded conversations made by the co-conspirator
financial institutions. Among the issuers and not-for-profit entities (σας θυμίζουν μή κυβερνητικές οργανώσεις και μή κερδοσκοπικές ΜΚΟ ??) whose
agreements or contracts were subject to the defendants' schemes were the Commonwealth of Massachusetts ,
the New Mexico Educational Assistance Foundation, the Tobacco Settlement
Financing Corporation of Rhode Island and the
RWJ Health Care Corp at Hamilton .
“Corrupt bidding schemes serve to weaken the
public’s trust in the municipal bond market and prevent public entities from
enjoying the benefits of a true competitive bidding process,” said Mary E.
Galligan, Acting Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI in New York . “Today’s conviction is further
proof of our efforts to weed out these corrupt criminals and ensure justice is
served.”
“Today's verdict is important because it
confirms that these complex, seemingly uninteresting backroom deals have a real
impact on taxpayers, who should benefit from a municipal bond issue and are
ultimately responsible for paying it off,” said Richard Weber, Chief, Internal
Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI). “Today’s convictions send a
strong message to the municipal bond industry and demonstrates the commitment
of the Internal Revenue Service and the Justice Department to rid the industry
of corrupt practices.
A total of 20 individuals
have been charged as a result of the department’s ongoing municipal bonds
investigation. Including today’s convictions, a total of 19 individuals have
been convicted or pleaded guilty, and one awaits trial. Additionally, one
company has pleaded guilty.
Two of charged fraud conspiracies carry a
maximum penalty per count of 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine. A third fraud conspiracy charge carries a
maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The two wire fraud charges carry a maximum
penalty per count of 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine. These maximum fines per count may be
increased to twice the gain derived from the crime or twice the loss suffered
by the victims of the crime, if either amount is greater than the statutory
maximum fine.
The verdict announced today resulted from an
ongoing investigation conducted by the Antitrust Division’s New York and Chicago Offices, the FBI and
the IRS-CI. The division is coordinating its investigation with the U.S.
Securities and Exchange Commission, the Office of the Comptroller of the
Currency and the Federal Reserve Bank of New
York .
Today’s convictions are part
of efforts underway by President Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force
(FFETF) which was created in November 2009 to wage an aggressive, coordinated
and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. With more
than 20 federal agencies, 94 U.S.
Attorneys’ offices and state and local partners, it’s the broadest coalition of
law enforcement, investigatory and regulatory agencies ever assembled to combat
fraud. Since its formation, the task force has made great strides in
facilitating increased investigation and prosecution of financial crimes;
enhancing coordination and cooperation among federal, state and local
authorities; addressing discrimination in the lending and financial markets and
conducting outreach to the public, victims, financial institutions and other
organizations. Over the past three fiscal years, the Justice Department has
filed more than 10,000 financial fraud cases against nearly 15,000 defendants
including more than 2,700 mortgage fraud defendants. For more information on
the task force, visit www.stopfraud.gov.
Anyone with information concerning bid rigging and related offenses in any financial
markets should contact the Antitrust Division’s New York Field
Office at 212-335-8000, the FBI at 212-384-5000 or IRS-CI at 212-436-1761, or
visit www.justice.gov/atr/contact/newcase.htm.