Goldman Sachs under criminal investigation by the US attorney's office in Manhattan

[scandal 951]

AP source: Goldman Sachs under criminal investigation by the US attorney's office in Manhattan

MARCY GORDON AP Business Writer

10:07 p.m. CDT, April 29, 2010

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. attorney's office in Manhattan is conducting a criminal investigation of Goldman Sachs over mortgage securities deals the big Wall Street firm arranged, a knowledgeable person said Thursday.

The person said the probe stems from a criminal referral by the Securities and Exchange Commission. The source spoke on condition of anonymity because the inquiry is in a preliminary phase. The SEC earlier this month filed civil fraud charges against Goldman and a trader in connection with the transactions, alleging it misled investors by failing to tell them the subprime mortgage securities had been chosen with help from a Goldman hedge fund client that was betting the investments would fail. Goldman has denied the charges and said it will contest them in court.

News of the action came a day after a group of 62 House lawmakers, including Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers, D-Mich., asked Justice to conduct a criminal probe of Goldman.

SEC spokesman John Nester wouldn't confirm or deny that the agency had made a referral to the Justice Department for a criminal investigation. He declined any comment on the matter, as did Yusill Scribner, a spokeswoman for the U.S. attorney's office in Manhattan.

Goldman spokesman Lucas van Praag said, "Given the recent focus on the firm, we're not surprised by the report of an inquiry. We would cooperate fully with any request for information."

The Wall Street Journal first reported the Justice Department action.

The Justice Department move was the latest in a dramatic series of turns in the Goldman saga, which has pitted the culture of Wall Street against angry lawmakers in an election year, in the wake of the financial crisis that plunged the country into the most severe recession since the Great Depression of the 1930s.

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

Is it a crime to sell shitty deals now? Mickey D's better get ready for that one.

[Ban Hammer 12,837]

Is it a crime to sell shitty deals now? Mickey D's better get ready for that one.

[scandal 951]

Criminal charges are not a laughing matter.

Yes, it's still a long stretch to see if the US Attorney will actually file them, and whether they can convince a jury and get a conviction(s).

But Mr. Pretty Boy Fabrice 'Fabulous Fab' Tourre won't be laughing when he's wearing an orange jumpsuit and doing a 3-5 year stretch at a federal pen.

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

Criminal charges are not a laughing matter.

Yes, it's still a long stretch to see if the US Attorney will actually file them, and whether they can convince a jury and get a conviction(s).

But Mr. Pretty Boy Fabrice 'Fabulous Fab' Tourre won't be laughing when he's wearing an orange jumpsuit and doing a 3-5 year stretch at a federal pen.

No Goldman exec is going to wear any orange jumpsuit. You should disabuse yourself of the idea that Goldman is touchable.

[scandal 951]

No Goldman exec is going to wear any orange jumpsuit. You should disabuse yourself of the idea that Goldman is touchable.

Oh, I agree that the real Goldman power guys will coast.

But 'Fabulous Fab' isn't a Goldman exec. For one thing, he's on indefinite leave from the firm. For another, even though his title was 'Executive Director', they call the janitors at white shoe firms 'Directors'. It's just a title, he's not really a somebody. He's exactly the kind of guy they're gonna push under the bus and take the fall, so that Blankfein & Sparks & the rest of the bigshots take a walk. I can definitely see Fabrice wearing orange in his future. With a name like Fabulous Fabrice... he SHOULD. That alone is a crime.

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

Oh, I agree that the real Goldman power guys will coast.

But 'Fabulous Fab' isn't a Goldman exec. For one thing, he's on indefinite leave from the firm. For another, even though his title was 'Executive Director', they call the janitors at white shoe firms 'Directors'. It's just a title, he's not really a somebody. He's exactly the kind of guy they're gonna push under the bus and take the fall, so that Blankfein & Sparks & the rest of the bigshots take a walk. I can definitely see Fabrice wearing orange in his future. With a name like Fabulous Fabrice... he SHOULD. That alone is a crime.

Executive Director titles should be outlawed altogether. I sure wouldn't want it. ED? #######?