Global Eagle shares plummet as CEO, CFO step down amid questions

Shares in Global Eagle Entertainment took a nosedive Tuesday (Feb. 21) after the in-flight connectivity stalwart disclosed the abrupt departures of its CEO and CFO.

Tuesday’s developments were the latest turbulence for a sector that saw another of its heavyweights, Panasonic Avionics, cut ties with its CEO and CFO earlier this month — the same day it disclosed it was being investigated by the U.S. Justice Department and Securities and Exchange Commission for possible violations of corruption and securities-related laws. read more »

Former NFL player Will Allen gets 6 years prison in Ponzi case

Will Allen, a former cornerback for the New York Giants and two other National Football League teams, was sentenced to six years in prison on Wednesday for his role in what prosecutors called a more than $35 million Ponzi scheme involving fraudulent loans to professional athletes. read more »

More Wells Fargo customers may be affected by sales scandal: filing

More Wells Fargo & Co customers may have been affected by a scandal over phony accounts than previously believed, the third-largest U.S. lender said in a regulatory filing on Wednesday.

Wells Fargo had previously estimated that up to 2.1 million customers may have had checking and credit-card accounts opened in their names without their permission over a period of several years.

As part of an expanded review there could be "an increase in the identified number of potentially impacted customers," Wells said. read more »

19 in Europe, US charged in international fraud schemes

Officials say 19 people have been charged in Europe and the U.S. with taking part in international fraud and money laundering conspiracies costing more than $13 million.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia said Wednesday in a statement that 17 people have been arrested in New York, Los Angeles, Hungary, Bulgaria, Germany and Israel after several years of investigation. Two others remain at large.

Officials say one scheme operated out of Europe and tricked would-be car buyers who sent money but never got their vehicles. In an outgrowth of that scheme, employees at mid-sized and large companies were tricked into wiring money into accounts controlled by members of the criminal enterprise.

FBI Lawyer Sting Rattles Billion-Dollar Whistle-Blower Unit

The Justice Department offers secrecy and cash to whistle-blowers for information about companies that cheated the government.

But one former government attorney is accused of using that information for his own gain. Turning the tables on a unit that can spend years investigating fraud cases, FBI agents are now questioning Justice Department lawyers about their ex-colleague, who was accused last month of trying to sell secrets about a case for $310,000.

Prosecutors say Jeffrey Wertkin attempted to sell a whistle-blower’s confidential lawsuit against a Silicon Valley company -- while wearing a wig in disguise. FBI agents want to know whether Wertkin, who left the government in April, got the lawsuit from someone inside the Justice Department and if he sold other secrets while working there, according to two people familiar with the matter who weren’t authorized to discuss it publicly. read more »

François Fillon, French Presidential Candidate, Vows to Run Despite Inquiry

France’s embattled center-right presidential candidate, François Fillon, defiantly vowed on Wednesday to stay in the race, even as he announced that he would be formally charged in a widening embezzlement investigation.

Mr. Fillon’s announcement, made at a news conference, added another element of uncertainty to an already unsettled campaign and increased the likelihood that France’s presidential race would be fought by two candidates from neither of the traditional mainstream parties. read more »

Misappropriation, Fraudulent Sales Solicitation, and Issuing False Statements in Fraud Schemes Involving Gold

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) today announced the filing of a federal civil enforcement action in Florida charging Defendants Carlos Javier Ramirez, Gold Chasers, Inc., and Royal Leisure International, Inc., all with last known addresses in Orlando, Florida, with misappropriating customer funds and engaging in fraudulent sales solicitations in connection with the purported purchase of physical gold.

According to the CFTC Complaint, since at least February 14, 2012 through at least January 31, 2016, Defendants fraudulently offered contracts to sell gold to at least 20 customers who reside in the U.S., Puerto Rico, and abroad, marketing one of their schemes through a website. Defendants allegedly fraudulently obtained at least $4.1 million from customers. Of that amount, Defendants misappropriated approximately $3.95 million of their customers’ funds, and also paid false profits to some customers, in the manner of a Ponzi scheme, according to the Complaint.

In order to entice customers, Defendants, among other things, allegedly promised to sell customers gold at a discount, which Defendants claimed was possible because Defendants purchased gold at discount prices at mines in Central and South America. However, the Defendants allegedly failed to buy gold that they could sell to their customers. The Complaint alleges that the Defendants made other fraudulent misrepresentations to lure customers, including that Defendants 1) would sell gold to customers at a price that was related to the London Bullion Market Association’s prices, 2) customers would have the opportunity to take physical possession of gold bars, and 3) customers would receive a “20% free bonus” payable in gold. All of these statements, according to the Complaint, were false. read more »

Twenty U.S. states join generic drug price-fixing lawsuit

California, Illinois and 18 more states have joined a lawsuit filed last year alleging that six companies, including Mylan NV and Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd, conspired to push up prices of two generic drugs, the Connecticut attorney general's office said on Wednesday.

Connecticut, which leads the group, and 19 other states filed the original lawsuit on Dec. 15. It added the additional states in filing an amended complaint which also added violations of state antitrust laws, the Connecticut attorney general's office said in a statement.

The state lawsuit is part of a broader effort by the federal government, states and the U.S. Congress to address the rising cost of many generic drugs.

The drugs involved in the state lawsuit are the delayed release version of a common antibiotic, doxycycline hyclate, and glyburide, an older drug used to treat diabetes read more »