JP Morgan acknowledged that it withdrew its own investments from two hedge funds that invested with Bernard Madoff just months before the massive fraud came to light. Investors are angry over the disclosure and want to know why JP Morgan, which says it withdrew over transparency concerns, protected its money but not that of investors whom it had steered towards the funds. (New York Times)
A federal judge ruled Wednesday that the U.S. government may continue to hold a 29-year-old Yemeni detainee at Guantanamo Bay. Judge Richard Leon supported the government’s case despite the fact that most of it was based on statements the detainee made to interrogators over the years; the legitimacy of statements made by detainees during interrogations has been questioned by judges and legal personnel involved in cases, including Leon himself. While the defense argued that the man was only a cook for the Taliban, Leon said that, in the words of Napoleon, “an army marches on its stomach.” Leon had previously ruled in favor of the release of Gitmo detainees. (Washington Post)
According to documents obtained by the Washington Post, the Interior Department ignored scientific findings when deciding to limit water flows in the Grand Canyon in order to optimize generation of electric power. A memo written by the superintendent of Grand Canyon National Park suggests that the department produced a flawed environmental assessment in order to defend itself in a lawsuit from an environmental group. The reduced flow of water was harmful for endangered fish species and risked eroding the canyon’s beaches. (Washington Post)
Nine FDA scientists who said they were forced to approve risky medical devices have written a letter to President Obama complaining that the agency has made them the target of a criminal investigation into their complaints. The same scientists had sent an earlier letter complaining about the risky devices and forced approvals, and, according to the scientists, the criminal investigation is focusing on this action. The scientists are outraged that the investigation targets them and not their allegedly corrupt managers. (New York Times)
A Tennessee investment manager has been charged with fraud in the first known case of someone actually using the government’s $700 billion TARP program as a lure for potential victims. Gordon Grigg of Nashville-based ProTrust Management allegedly bilked investors out of $6.5 million by telling them he would invest in government-guaranteed commercial paper as part of the TARP program. Such an arrangement is not actually possible. (Associated Press)
Gulfport, Mississippi mayor Brent Warr and his wife Laura were indicted yesterday in a fraud scheme that sought to benefit from Hurricane Katrina related insurance claims. The couple claimed they lived in a beach front home when in fact they had not moved into the damaged property before the storm hit. Warr and his wife obtained $222,798 in federal relief and insurance funds. (Biloxi Sun Herald)
