Tag Archives: fraud

January 16, 2012 · 9:44 AM

Will Jon Corzine go to PRISON? And, why YOU should care.

Jon Corzine has it all.  All that is, in what we want in the worlds of politics, Wall Street, crime and punishment. For those of you who do not know who Jon Corzine is, here is a brief snapshot. Jon Corzine is a former senator, the former Governor of New Jersey, the former CEO of Wall Street banking giant Goldman Sachs and the former CEO of the now defunct and controversial MF Global.

That is quite a resume. But, now Jon Corzine finds himself in the middle of a messy scandal involving MF Global. MF Global was a financial services firm that specialized in brokerage futures. MF Global filed for bankruptcy protection in October 2011.  Now, Corzine himself is being sued in a class action suit brought by Montana farmers who are charging that the financial firm and Corzine stole millions from their accounts in order to cover spiraling debts.

Corzine was at the helm of the firm when it declared Chapter 11 on October 31, the eighth-largest bankruptcy filing in U.S. history. Regulators initially thought $600 million in customer funds had gone missing, but later upped their estimate to $1.2 billion. Only 60 percent of customer funds could be found.

According to the February issue of Vanity Fair, Corzine, who reportedly made over $16 million between 2010 and 2011, was shopping for a chateau in France with his wife two weeks before MF Global filed for bankruptcy.

Later in the month, he appeared before the Senate Agriculture Committee to deny any wrongdoing. “I never directed anyone at MF Global to misuse customer funds. I never intended to, and as far as I’m concerned, I never gave instructions that anyone could misconstrue,” DO I smell perjury???

Plaintiffs cannot sue MF Global while it is under bankruptcy protection, but can sue the company’s former executives, including Corzine. And, so here we are.

Jon Corzine is no stranger to controversy.  In 1999 when Corzine was running for the Senate, he met Carla Katz. Both were married. Katz was also president of local 1034 of The Communications Workers of America. In 2004, as part of their “break up” settlement, yes both left their spouses for each other, Corzine paid Katz a settlement in excess of $6 million. . Their relationship and the financial settlement Katz received after their breakup led to allegations of many potential conflicts of interest in labor negotiations while Corzine was governor. A Democrat state ethics panel, acting on a complaint ruled in May 2007 that Katz’s contact with Corzine during negotiations did not violate the governor’s code of conduct.

But, was this entitlement all foreplay for where Corzine finds himself now? He is in massive trouble. He may not be in criminal trouble yet, although I have predicted for weeks he will be, he is in financial trouble. And, with a Wall St, Political, financial fraud mess, how will this story go away?

One way only the Corzine story goes away. It is perceived as complicated. But, the reality is that the MF Global situation is no more complex than that of Bernie Madoff or any other high profile financial scam. This insider believes that Corzine should call me for his prison coaching before he opens his mouth too many more times. Of course, like Blago, he will not. So, for now I call Jon Corzine the gift that keeps on giving to those of us in media and a prison consultant like me!

Until Corzine and others stop this behavior and accept responsibility for their various misdeeds, Wall Street and politicians at large deserve to be under the scrutiny they find themselves.

Yes, change is possible and Jon Corzine YOU give the rest of us a bad name. Get real. Raj Rajaratnam, Rod Blagojevech and Bernie Madoff are waiting for you.

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Filed under Bernie Madoff, Federal Prison, Jon Corzine, MF Global, prepare for jail

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January 8, 2012 · 6:27 PM

How Long Until Casey Anthony and her poor dog are in trouble???

UPDATE: Why is CAsey making her “hideout” public? Countdown to her return to jail…

As my readers know, I have been respectful of the fact that Casey Anthony was acquitted of murder. This does not mean I feel she is not guilty. But now, Anthony and her team of losers have gone too far. How predictable!

Sad but true, many offenders return to prison on probation violations. It looks like Casey will be no different. This at least because of the additional Videos she “released” this week. What a mess and how STUPID! And, now her hiding place is out as are pictures of her dog? Hello Humane Society.

Let’s address why I think this was so foolish first and then we will get to the stories the tapes tell.

Casey Anthony is on ‘Supervised Probation.”  That means that she has strict accountability including checking in monthly with her probation officer, filing an income/loss statement, having a job or going to school and other things. In her last official released probation statement, Anthony claimed she had started online classes but did NOT have a job. Yet, on the video that was allegedly made two months ago, Anthony states that she bought the computer with her own money. WHAT MONEY??? This, from a woman who told her probation officer she had no job. Any money she earns must be accounted for because she has liens from the IRS and the State of Florida. SO, these videos are either showing her lying about where the computer came from or she lied on her probation report. Neither scenario is good for her.

Next, the tapes tell a story. Months ago I wrote about how the Jail House tapes of her family visit told a story of a very twisted family. Not just Casey, all of them. I received lots of angry comments and mail. But, of course it turned out during the trial that this family does have problems and many secrets. Hey, even perjury by momma Cindy Anthony! But, these new tapes of Casey show that she has learned NOTHING, has no remorse and obviously is severely mentally ill. After all, she talks about how she gets to have a camera and a phone! Hello, you had that in jail and in court. And, she talks about needing things of her own! Nothing about Caylee of course, and worse yet, nothing about wanting to lead a good and productive life. Let’s not forget that she did spend almost 4 years in jail for FRAUD. So, she is a felon and she should be trying to change.

As a prison coach and expert, I see amazing change everyday. Cases like Casey Anthony bring an even worse name to the rest of us. This insider suggests that Casey Anthony and her “team” get it together. But, don’t worry. I am sure her probation officer and others are on the case. Something else will pop big time, and soon. How sad and what a waste of our time and money. Get Real Casey Anthony, but I will save my Incarcerventions for those who care and can change. Look, I am not expecting Casey Anthony to practice some true Restorative Justice, but anything positive would be a start. I just do not see it.

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Filed under Casey Anthony, cindy anthony, jail, Jose Baez

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October 29, 2011 · 3:59 PM

The Madoff Family stories are more B.S….

Just when we thought it was safe to put the Madoff saga behind us, two new books and several interviews have appeared. I say so what, who cares, but others seem to find this case fascinating. Even Ruth Madoff will be on CBS 60 Minutes.

Stephanie Madoff who was married to Bernie Madoff’s son Mark, has an emotional new book out about the suicide of her husband. While I feel sorry for Stephanie and her young children, the question is why write a book? What’s the take away for the reader? My answer, not MUCH. Now, the other Madoff son Andrew has a book coming out and Ruth Madoff is giving interviews that she and Bernie tried to commit suicide. PLEASE!!! better luck next time!

Lastly, we have good old Bernie Madoff himself giving an interview to Barbara Walters while he is of course in prison for life. This interview was not on camera because the Federal Bureau of Prisons does not allow cameras inside this secret society.

As a true insider, after all I was in Federal Prison and spent years learning how the SEC and FBI work while my case was going on, I can tell you that I do NOT believe these tales. How is it possible that one day the Madoff sons “figured out” old Bernie was a bad seed and the next the FBI arrested him. WHAT? These things take time no matter how much you agree and say you did it. Otherwise everybody could call the FBI make claim and cause chaos! There is a process.

So, why all the Madoff fuss? Two year anniversary anybody? Money needed and just plain vanity.

Yes, it was all about the money and still is. My suggestion buyers beware of ALL of these people and their silly stories. And, I wonder how the victims like seeing Madoffs get so much attention yet again? Many of us have made mistakes and try to learn from them to help others and ourselves lead better lives. I see nothing here but me, me, me all over again. Enough already.

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October 10, 2011 · 7:27 AM

Wall Street and the Rajaratnam case…About to hit FED TOWN!!!

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Finally, the billionaire hedge fund manager Raj Rajaratnam is about to check into Federal Prison.. And, in an ironic twist for a man who made a living off market timing, the climate could not be worse for Wall Street criminals. Rajaratnam is the 54 old Sri Lankan born founder of the Galleon Group of Hedge Funds. He received an 11 year sentence. Part of this is based on his convictions, and part as a response to Rajaratnam’s apparent refusal to accept any responsibility for his actions.

So, let’s break this down and see how Raj has gotten to this desperate point and what he should have done and must start doing now.

The case of Rajaratnam is itself unique. He will be the only true billionaire who will most likely serve a ten-year plus term in Federal Prison. Think about it, most of the other Wall Street cases like Bernie Madoff, John Rigas, Richard Scrushy, Andy Fastow, Steve Madden and Martha Stewart have either received lighter sentences or do not still have big money by the time they hit the slammer. Blago will even be broke when he finally touches down at Fed Town. Raj was found guilty at trial of 14 counts of conspiracy and securities fraud including insider trading. Mistake number one! Raj could have worked out a plea agreement and faced a lesser prison term. Instead he went for broke as did his two former trading partners the Goffer brothers. In fact, Zvi Goffer received a ten-year sentence last week.

As we all know there are marches and protest all around the world right now. Occupy Wall Street has hit every major city in the United States and some overseas. There is little mercy for those who appear to have made illegal profits while many in the U.S. are struggling. Put this together with the way Raj and his team are acting and it spells FEDERAL PRISON. And I don’t mean a Federal Prison Camp. In fact, if Raj is sentenced to more that 10 years it is likely he will not be “camp” eligible for awhile and may have to start his prison term at an FCI or medium security prison like Madoff. Hey, they may even become bunkmates!

Our Criminal Justice System gives credit or “points” for accepting responsibility so start now Raj…

Many people do not know that a sentencing calculation is made up of a point system. Offense points, criminal history points and credits for accepting responsibility and pleading guilty. Yep, people also get credited points for cooperation in some cases. Raj did not plead guilty and so he has no credit points. To make matters worse for him, his lawyers have filed paperwork to try to mitigate his sentence saying Raj has a health condition but he still  is appearing very grandiose. Of course this did not sit well with the U.S. Attorney’s office and will not work with the judge either. In these after the fact proposals I always encourage the client and their legal team to show a reason for mercy and make a proposal that is relevant and meaningful. Translation: SHOW THE COURT YOU GET THE DRIFT AND ARE SORRY. But, many people do not want to admit  anything either because they will mount an appeal or because they do not feel they have done anything wrong. The bottom line is that you do not have to admit the crime but should admit that you have made poor choices and hence have earned a ticket to prison, and more importantly are willing to change your ways.

Changing your ways is key. Many of my clients think that because they have committed “white collar” crimes, they will be treated better in prison. WRONG!!!

How should Raj and his family prepare for prison?

The Rajaratnam family has a long road ahead. Not just Raj, but his entire family. His wife and three kids and all of his “friends.” I believe that an entire family actually needs to prepare for prison as it often more difficult on the family left behind than it is for the person inside. Raj and his family need to sit down and make a plan that includes how and when they will visit him and how they can get on with their lives and be productive while he is away.  But, they must get into the proper mindset to do this well. Once again, prison staff or other inmates do not treat “white collar” inmates better. I call prison the ultimate equalizer and this is why. Once inside there are different rules and codes of conduct. In fact, the staff will often look at “white collar” inmates harsher at first because they know that many have not been properly coached and still have an entitled attitude. Hint- Grandiosity and entitlement are what lands people in prison and does not help once you are there. Raj also will need to find a way to make his time productive and busy while letting his family know he is doing fine. NO pity parties and NO complaining. These are a few of the tips I would give to the Rajaratnams. I would also encourage them to learn all about the rules, regulations, food, jobs and more.

These are just a few ideas on how to prepare for prison. Last word is respect. Respect is key and that goes for respecting the other inmates, the staff and everybody’s personal space.  Believe it or not, prison is the easy part of this journey through our criminal justice process. So, Raj- Get real so you can get over it and get home! Otherwise, you will need an Incarcervention, something you should have had long ago!!!

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Filed under Federal Prison, financial fraud, prison preparation, raj rajaratnum, Rod Blagojavech

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August 31, 2011 · 9:34 AM

Look who really is Dancing with the Devil…

No, I do not mean Nancy Grace. In fact, Nancy will bring some excitement to the Dancing With The Stars cast. She is nothing if not passionate. I am talking about Casey Anthony prosecutor Jeff Ashton. Surprise, Surprise. Ashton has a book coming out soon. Wow, that was fast.

In fact, one has to wonder how he has the chutzpah to do this. Didn’t he just blow the “case of the century?” We must remember that Ashton was a STATE employee and with that he had an obligation to represent the people vs. Casey Anthony. So, not only did he laugh and act like a fool in court, he must have also been moonlighting while putting this book together. This is outrageous.

Some questions. While I proclaimed Ashton a member of the BAD PROSECUTORS Club weeks ago, he is really pushing it here. Let us not forget all of the money spent on this case and the money we are still spending with the probation blunder. Where was Ashton when Anthony was “serving probation” in jail? Writing a book of course!

I am the first to say that both sides, Ashton and Baez presented poor cases. Yet, Ashton had the truth on his side. His arrogance lost him the case and costs the rest of us millions of dollars. All of this and Casey Anthony is a free woman!

Now, if the shoes were on the other feet, we would be screaming if Casey Anthony or Jose Baez had books coming out now. The fact is that Ashton has a right to earn a living but not at taxpayer expense. So, while he collects his government pension and accepts no responsibility for the loss, we are still paying. OUCH!!!

Last question. How much of the proceeds will go to charities that benefit missing and abused children? And, I don’t mean the Anthony foundation. Mr. Ashton, change is possible and not only felons need to make changes. Start here and now and pay some of it forward. Nobody likes a taker and a looser.

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Filed under Casey Anthony, casey anthony. jose baez, cindy anthony, jail, Jeff Ashton, Nancy Grace, prison preparation, Tot mom

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