LOOK MA, FRANK FOY IS MAKING NEWS AND TAKING NAMES

US Justice Officials Subpoena NM for Aldus Data

Bloomberg - Martin Z. Braun - ‎

(Update2)

By Martin Z. Braun

June 26 (Bloomberg) -- Federal prosecutors subpoenaed New Mexico’s $6.3 billion teachers pension fund for records related to Aldus Equity Partners, a consultant that advised it on private equity investments.

New Mexico’s Educational Retirement Board released the subpoena and another requesting communications between the fund’s chairman Bruce Malott, Governor Bill Richardson’s former campaign treasurer, reversing an earlier decision to withhold the document.

The Justice Department asked the pension fund to produce all correspondence, contracts and e-mails with Dallas-based Aldus. Prosecutors also demanded a list of companies that Aldus recommended that the fund invest in, minutes of meetings Aldus attended, and a record of payments to the firm. New Mexico’s State Investment Council, which manages $11.8 billion of endowment funds, has acknowledged receiving a federal subpoena without releasing the document.

The Justice Department’s probe is the second federal investigation of how New Mexico awarded contracts to manage its finances.

Federal prosecutors have investigated whether a California financial adviser was awarded $1.5 million in bond and interest- rate swap work in the state in 2004 in exchange for $100,000 in donations to Richardson’s political committees.

Richardson, who has denied wrongdoing, withdrew from consideration as U.S. commerce secretary following disclosure of the probe.

Aldus Fired

New Mexico’s teachers pension fund and the state investment council fired Aldus within the past two months after a managing partner of the Dallas-based firm was accused of paying kickbacks in New York state.

New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo charged Aldus money manager Saul Meyer with paying $320,000 to a shell company owned by a political adviser to former New York State Comptroller Alan Hevesi. Meyer has denied wrongdoing; Hevesi faces no charges.

Cuomo and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission are investigating money managers and their placement agents who used ties to public officials and kickbacks to buy and sell access to the $2 trillion in U.S. public pension systems.

Cuomo has charged several individuals in the investigation, including Henry “Hank” Morris, Hevesi’s former adviser, and former New York State deputy comptroller David Loglisci.

The Justice Department’s subpoena to New Mexico also seeks records related to third-party investment brokers and contracts with firms investing money or advising the fund.

Placement Agent Payments

Placement agents, were paid at least $33 million after securing investments from New Mexico’s teachers pension fund and state investment council, according to records released by the funds.

Marc Correra, the son of a political supporter of Richardson shared in more than $16 million, about half of fees paid to middlemen for New Mexico investments. Correra’s father, Anthony, served on the board of a political action committee Richards set up to register Hispanic and American Indian voters.

The teachers pension fund’s former chief investment officer, Frank Foy, has alleged in a whistleblower suit filed June 9 that the fund hired Aldus over the objections of staff, who said the firm wasn’t qualified.

The suit alleges that Malott “insisted” that Aldus be interviewed by the pension fund even though staff hadn’t rated Aldus among the top five finalists.

(more)

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Duelling Madoff lawsuits compete for first try at recovering lost ...

The New Mexico Independent - Trip Jennings - ‎Jun 25, 2009‎

Both lawsuits – one filed by Frank Foy, the other by the National Education Association of New Mexico – seek to recover damages from Texas-based Austin ...

Austin sued over New Mexico losses in Madoff investments

Pensions & Investments - Arleen Jacobius - ‎Jun 24, 2009‎

... that it is much more focused than another lawsuit unsealed Tuesday by former CIO Frank Foy, said Christopher G Schatzman, the board's general counsel. ...

New Mexico News Brief, Wednesday June 24

KOAT.com - ‎Jun 24, 2009‎

Frank Foy alleges that political considerations in Gov. Bill Richardson's administration improperly influenced investments and decisions on money managers ...

Suit makes New York- New Mexico pay-to-play connection

Global Pensions - Raquel Pichardo-Allison - ‎Jun 24, 2009‎

Frank Foy's allegations are far-reaching, naming some two-dozen financial firms and claiming investments made by the new Mexico Educational Retirement Board ...

Austin Capital Sued Over New Mexico Losses

FINalternatives - ‎Jun 24, 2009‎

... class-action suits, and yesterday was added to the list of 75 Madoff-linked defendants being sued by Frank Foy, a former investment officer at the NMERB.

Foy goes after Texas firm linked to Madoff

The New Mexico Independent - Trip Jennings - ‎Jun 24, 2009‎

Frank Foy on Tuesday added a Texas-based firm that caused New Mexico teachers' pension funds to be indirectly invested in ...

Mexico PF Ex-CIO Claims Pay-To-Play

Emii.com - ‎Jun 24, 2009‎

Frank Foy, ex-CIO of the New Mexico Educational Retirement Board has accused several alternative investment firms and placement agents of pay-to-play, ...

Suit Alleges Gov. Involved In Pay-To-Play Scheme

KOAT.com - ‎Jun 23, 2009‎

The lawsuit was brought against the state by Frank Foy. In it, page after page of allegations say Gov. Bill Richardson and people close to him were involved ...

State teachers' union seeks to recover millions lost to Madoff

The New Mexico Independent - Trip Jennings - ‎Jun 23, 2009‎

Frank Foy, a former investment officer at the Educational Retirement Board, filed a complaint last year to recover $90 million that was lost because of a ...

Suit claims NM money

KRQE - Dave Bohman - ‎Jun 23, 2009‎

Former Education Pension Fund Official Frank Foy has added what he calls a New York connection to his lawsuit. Basically, Foy claims New Mexico money helped ...

Whistleblower alleges fraud on NM investments

Dallas Morning News - Barry Massey - ‎Jun 23, 2009‎

Frank Foy's lawsuit makes broad allegations that investment decisions by the State Investment Council and Educational Retirement Board were made to reward ...

Whistleblower alleges fraud on NM investments

KDBC - ‎Jun 23, 2009‎

Frank Foy filed the lawsuit, which was unsealed in state district court this week. Dozens of investment firms and their principals are named as defendants. ...

Former New Mexico Ed CIO alleges pay to play

Pensions & Investments - Arleen Jacobius - ‎Jun 23, 2009‎

Frank Foy, former CIO of the $6.5 billion New Mexico Educational Retirement Board, Santa Fe, is making pay-to-play allegations against a ...

Contempt charge sought in NM pay-to-play

United Press International - ‎Jun 18, 2009‎

In court papers, attorneys for Frank Foy said Amanda Cooper should be cited for contempt because she failed to hand over documents on a non-profit ...

'Whistle-blower' Lawyer Files Contempt Charge Against Former ...

HispanicBusiness.com - ‎Jun 18, 2009‎

Lawyers for "whistle-blower" Frank Foy are asking that former deputy Bill Richardson campaign manager Amanda Cooper be held in contempt of court for not ...

Whistleblower wants Amanda Cooper, foundation held in contempt of ...

The New Mexico Independent - Trip Jennings - ‎Jun 17, 2009‎

(File photo) A lawyer for whistleblower Frank Foy has asked a state judge to hold Gov. Bill Richardson's former deputy presidential campaign chair in ...

Maryland has interest in discerning Marc Correra's suitability as ...

The New Mexico Independent - Trip Jennings - ‎Jun 16, 2009‎

The former officer, Frank Foy, has alleged that there was a pay-to-play culture in how the state made investments and cited the Vanderbilt deal in ...

Richardson's office denies NMI records request citing 'executive ...

The New Mexico Independent - Trip Jennings - ‎Jun 9, 2009‎

... executive privilege recently as one of several reasons to deny records requested by a former Educational Retirement Board investment officer Frank Foy. ...

Anthony Correra worked closely with NM State Investment Council

The New Mexico Independent - Heath Haussamen - ‎Jun 8, 2009‎

Those investments, which the state lost completely, are the subject of the pay-to-play lawsuit brought by Frank Foy on behalf of the state. ...

Defendants decline to turn over documents

Chicago Defender - ‎Jun 2, 2009‎

Frank Foy, a former investment officer for the state Educational Retirement Board, alleges the state lost the money in flawed investments through an alleged ...

Witness deposed in Frank Foy pay-to-play lawsuit

The New Mexico Independent - Trip Jennings - ‎Jun 2, 2009‎

Turner is a witness in a lawsuit filed by former ERB investment officer Frank Foy. Foy, who filed the civil complaint last year, is seeking to recover the ...

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The pensiongate scandal keeps on growing and growing and growing, Bigger than Watergate.

BTW: It all started with a phone call to a hotline setup by "honest" Chris Callaghan who was running against Alan Hevesi in 2006.

VJ Machiavelli

NO MORE SCHUMER

NO MORE PELOSI

NO MORE RANGEL

NO MORE ENGEL AND HIS MILLION DOLLAR HOME IN MARYLAND

CUOMO I RECUSE

NY AG, Entrust Dispute Report On Pension Probe Recusal

Wall Street Journal - ‎

By Chad Bray, Dow Jones Newswires

NEW YORK (Dow Jones)--New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's office is disputing a published report that the attorney general had recused himself from a probe into a hedge fund firm that had handled his personal and campaign money.

In a letter dated Wednesday on the attorney general's Web site, Steven M. Cohen, Cuomo's chief of staff, said hedge fund firm EnTrust Capital Inc. was never the subject of an investigation into an alleged pay-for-pay probe involving the $122 billion New York State Common Retirement Fund.

Cohen said Cuomo recused himself when he took office in early 2007 "from all matters involving individuals or entities in which he had a financial interest, including EnTrust. Again, there was no recusal from the investigation because there was no investigation."

Had any issue arisen regarding EnTrust, Cohen said he, as chief of staff, would have been ultimately responsible for decision making, not Cuomo.

Also, Cuomo has not had any funds invested with EnTrust for more than a year, Cohen said in his letter.

The published report raised questions about a potential conflict of interest involving Cuomo and Entrust, saying the firm's Capital Waters Fund Ltd. received more than $20 million from Liberty Oak Capital Fund LP in 2006.

The report said the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission has alleged Liberty Oak's parent company, Consulting Services Group LLC, was able to access investments from the New York State Common Retirement Fund in 2005 after agreeing to pay more than $1 million to a firm associated with Henry "Hank" Morris, a one-time top aide to former New York Comptroller Alan Hevesi.

Cuomo's office has alleged Morris and David J. Loglisci, the state's former deputy comptroller and chief investment officer, essentially sold access to billions of dollars in money held by the New York State Common Retirement Fund to favored investment firms in exchange for kickbacks and other payments for personal and political gain. They were charged in a 123-count indictment in March and have denied wrongdoing.

(more)

Cuomo Recused Himself

Hedge Fund Net - Daniel Kiernan - ‎

That placement agent was associated with Henry “Hank” Morris, who was top aide to then comptroller Alan Hevesi. Morris is accused of steering investments ...

Cuomo sits one out in pension probe

Legal News Line - John O'Brien - ‎

Cuomo said Carlyle retained Hank Morris as a placement agent in 2003 to obtain investments from the New York Common Retirement Fund. ...

Three Degrees Of Separation: Cuomo, Scandal-Tarred FoF Invested In ...

FINalternatives - ‎

The hedge fund itself apparently did not pay any so-called finder's fee to Hank Morris, the charged former top consultant to ex-state Comptroller Alan ...

=====================================================

It seems this story has legs

VJ Machiavelli

NO MORE SCHUMER

NO MORE PELOSI

NO MORE RANGEL

NO MORE ENGEL AND HIS MILLION DOLLAR HOME IN MARYLAND

CONFLICT OR NO CONFLICT ONLY CUOMO KNOWS FOR SURE

Cuomo Recused Himself in Money Manager Case Linked to Scandal

By Karen Freifeld

June 24 (Bloomberg) -- New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo recused himself in investigating EnTrust Capital Inc., a hedge fund firm that’s handled his personal and campaign money and received state pension funds from a company he identified as paying possible illegal kickbacks, his chief of staff said.

Cuomo, 51, turned the case over to his special counsel, Linda Lacewell in 2007, said chief of staff Steven Cohen. His recusal and his EnTrust investment, which he sold recently, according to spokesman Richard Bamberger, present a potential conflict of interest for Cuomo, a legal ethics expert said.

Before Cohen’s afternoon statement, Bamberger and Cuomo spokesman Alex Detrick had previously declined to respond to repeated e-mails and calls since May about whether EnTrust was under investigation by Cuomo and whether he had recused himself.

Monroe Freedman, a legal-ethics professor at Hofstra University Law School in Hempstead, New York, said Cuomo, a Democrat who has been leading a nationwide probe of corruption involving public pension funds, did not cure his potential conflict by selling his EnTrust stake.

“I do not think it makes a difference,” Freedman said. “The relationship has been too close and that leads to a reasonable inference that he would be inclined to favor them. It’s been a beneficial relationship to him.”

Freedman said he was “troubled” by Cuomo’s using a deputy as an alternate instead of an appointed independent counsel or special prosecutor.

“Anyone in his office would know that Cuomo is recusing himself because he cares or there’s an appearance he cares and that person, being subordinate to him or dependent on him, would have a similar conflict, a personal conflict of interest.”

Cuomo’s Standard

The appearance standard was one Cuomo said he would abide by when he campaigned for attorney general.

“I always err on the side of caution,” Cuomo said, when asked in a Bloomberg interview in the fall of 2006 about possible conflicts of interest. He also said that “the appearance of integrity is just as important as the reality.”

Interest in EnTrust as a possible additional subject of Cuomo’s pension-fund probe traces back to 2006, when its Capital Waters Fund Ltd. received more than $20 million from Liberty Oak Capital Fund LP, according to Robert Whalen, spokesman for New York state comptroller Thomas DiNapoli. Liberty Oak’s parent, Consulting Services Group LLC, got access to state pension money after signing an agreement that paid Henry “Hank” Morris about $1 million in kickbacks to get the business, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission said in a complaint against Morris.

EnTrust’s Founders

EnTrust was founded in 1997 by Goldman Sachs Group Inc. alumni Gregg Hymowitz, Michael Horowitz, and Mark Fife, according to the firm’s Web site. Its Capital Waters Fund is an offshore fund the firm launched in 1999. Cuomo’s state financial disclosure forms for 2005 through 2008 show him as a limited partner in EnTrust’s Capital Diversified Fund LP. Statements for 2009 haven’t been published yet. Before Cohen’s disclosure of the recusal, Bamberger said this morning that Cuomo hadn’t had EnTrust interests “for more than a year.”

“EnTrust is not a subject of the investigation because it did not use Hank Morrisas a placement agent,” Bamberger said in a statement. “CSG used Hank Morris as a placement agent to help secure the New York state pension Fund’s investment in Liberty Oak. Many hedge funds, including EnTrust, then obtained investments of capital from the Liberty Oak fund of funds. EnTrust did not use Morris as a placement agent to help secure the funds it received from Liberty Oak.”

Hymowitz did not return a call for comment, after an assistant called Bloomberg News to find out the subject of the inquiry. Fife, another managing partner, also did not reply to an e-mailed question about how the pension fund came to invest with EnTrust.

EnTrust Statement

Brandy Bergman of Sard Verbinnen & Co. in New York, who identified herself as a spokeswoman for EnTrust, made the following statement this afternoon after Hymowitz and Fife hadn’t replied.

“Neither Entrust Capital nor anyone at the firm ever paid a finder’s fee to Hank Morris or retained him or any of his entities as placement agent for investments by the New York State Retirement Fund or any other pension fund. The New York State Retirement Fund did not allocate any capital to Entrust. New York State did make an investment in Liberty Oak, a fund of funds it established with CSG which invested in dozens of hedge funds including Entrust. Entrust had no role in CSG’s manager selections and received less than 3 percent of the New York State funds allocated to Liberty Oak.”

Morris Charged

Morris, the chief political consultant to then-state comptroller Alan Hevesi, whose office administers the pension fund, was charged criminally by Cuomo in March with selling access to fund assets in exchange for kickbacks from money managers such as Liberty Oak.

Memphis-based Consulting Services Group, which created the Liberty Oak fund-of-funds for the state, is identified in both the Morris indictment and the SEC complaint as having paid him fees. CSG hasn’t been criminally charged or sued by the SEC.

Liberty Oak received $200 million on July 1, 2006, the same day EnTrust received $15 million from Liberty Oak, according to Whalen. EnTrust got another $5 million through Liberty Oak on June 1, 2007, he said.

EnTrust, whose partners have contributed to Cuomo’s campaign funds, is not named in either proceeding.

John Nester, a spokesman for the SEC, declined comment on whether EnTrust is under investigation.

Liberty Oak was established in June 2006 for a portfolio of hedge fund investments for the New York state Common Retirement Fund. CSG, as general partner of the fund, managed the hedge fund investments for the state.

Searle & Co.

In July 2005, CSG entered into an agreement with Searle & Co., Morris’s broker-dealer, to pay it 30 percent of the management fees received from the state for managing the fund assets. According to this “undisclosed quid pro quo arrangement,” the SEC complaint says the pension fund bought a $635 million limited partnership interest in Liberty Oak Fund in 2006, and $130 million in 2007. In exchange, CSG paid Searle $1.15 million, 95 percent of which went to Morris, the SEC said.

“CSG did not engage in a pay-to-play scheme,” the company said in a statement on its Web site. The company’s agreement with Searle complied with the SEC’s rules and was fully disclosed, the company said.

Robert E. Orians, an attorney representing CSG, declined further comment, including why Liberty Oak gave the state pension money to EnTrust.

EnTrust managing partner Hymowitz is also a major Cuomo campaign contributor. He gave the campaign fund, “Andrew Cuomo 2010,” $55,000 since January 2008, according to state Board of Elections records.

Last Contribution

Hymowitz’s last recorded contribution to Cuomo was $20,000 on Jan. 14. Michael E. Horowitz, of Stamford, Connecticut, and Mark Fife of Manhattan’s Upper East Side, also each gave Cuomo $10,000 in January 2008. This is in addition to tens of thousands of dollars Hymowitz contributed to Cuomo’s earlier campaigns.

Hymowitz served as national co-chair for the 2004 presidential campaign of U.S. Representative Richard Gephardt, a Democrat from Missouri, according to the EnTrust Web site.

In December 2004, Andrew Cuomo For Attorney General Inc. another campaign fund, received $91,475 in interest from EnTrust Capital, according to state Board of Elections records. In September 2004, the campaign got $17,865 in interest and in June 2004, it received $8,617, the records show.

Morris Pitched EnTrust

Morris pitched EnTrust to state pension fund officials before Liberty Oak received the state fund’s initial investment in July 2006, according to a person familiar with the session. At a meeting attended by Hevesi and former deputy comptroller David Loglisci, among others, Morris pushed for the state to invest money with the hedge fund firm, the person said.

“I’m working with Hymowitz,” Morris said at the meeting, according to the person.

Morris also said he had his own money invested with Hymowitz and had data with him showing EnTrust’s fund performance, the person said.

Loglisci was indicted with Morris on charges of benefiting from and facilitating the kickback plot. Loglisci and Morris have pleaded not guilty to the charges.

The conversation was similar to when Morris pitched the Carlyle Group, the person said. Carlyle paid almost $13 million to Searle & Co., the broker-dealer Morris was associated with, to secure investments from the state retirement fund.

(more)

Cuomo's Ties to Fund Are Questioned

New York Times Blogs - ‎

“The funds EnTrust received from Liberty Oak had nothing at all to do with Hank Morris,” the office said in a statement provided to DealBook on Wednesday. ...

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Each day brings a new twist in the pensiongate scandal.

VJ Machiavelli

No More Schumer

No More Pelosi

No More Rangel

No More Engel and his million dollar home in Maryland

PENSIONGATE THE MATRIX OF CORRUPTION FROM NY TO NM AND BEYOND

Suit claims NM money

paid NY bribes

Reporter: Dave BohmanWeb Producer: Devon Armijo

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - The complicated pay to play lawsuit involving New Mexico's state pension fund has just sprouted another tentacle that stretches all the way across the continent.

Former Education Pension Fund Official Frank Foy has added what he calls a New York connection to his lawsuit.

Basically, Foy claims New Mexico money helped pay for New York bribes.

“This ‘Pensiongate’ situation is a quote "Matrix of Corruption" that extends all the way across the country,” Foy’s lawyer Victor Marshall said. ”This matrix of corruption however, is centered in New York and New Mexico.”

Marshall and his client accuse dozens of New Mexico state officials of taking kickbacks in return for investment decisions.

Tuesday, Marshall added three new defendants, who are men that are also charged in New York's pension kickback scheme. The men are political strategist Hank Morris, former New York State Comptroller Alan Hevesi and former New York Deputy Pension Director David Loglicsi.

New York prosecutors claim those three illegally steered pension fund investments to companies who made generous contributions to Hevesi's campaigns.

“They used New Mexico retirement money to pay bribes and kickbacks in New York,” Marshall said.

(more)

============================================================

The plot thickens

VJ Machiavelli

NO MORE SCHUMER

NO MORE PELOSI

NO MORE RANGEL

NO MORE ENGEL AND HIS MILLION DOLLAR HOME IN MARYLAND

WELCOME TO ALBANY WHERE HANK MORRIS GOT HIS START IN POLITICS, FOR YOUR OWN SAFETY PLEASE KEEP YOUR HANDS IN YOUR OWN POCKET.

From Halls of Montezuma to Floors of Albany, Something Went Awry

By CLYDE HABERMAN

Published: June 15, 2009

The best thing about spending time on the D-Day beaches in Normandy last week was that the cartoon antics that pass for politics in Albany appeared nowhere on our radar.

Related

Monserrate’s Flip Creates Tie in New York Senate (June 16, 2009)

No, that’s not right. The best thing was the D-Day beaches themselves. One could not stand on Omaha Beach and the cliffs of Pointe du Hoc, or walk among the 9,387 headstones of the fallen who lie in the American military cemetery at Colleville-sur-Mer, and not be moved to tears by the valor of those who fought the good fight in World War II.

They gave their lives to free others from tyranny. They died in the name of democracy.

One can only imagine how they might feel were they to know that, 65 years later, democracy as practiced in the capital of the self-aggrandizing Empire State rests unsettlingly in the hands of two unreliable state senators. One, Hiram Monserrate of Queens, is charged with slashing his girlfriend’s face with a broken glass. The other, Pedro Espada Jr. of the Bronx, has been the target of more investigations than an Enron executive.

We’ve strayed exceedingly far, have we not, from the selfless heroics of D-Day.

New Yorkers are running out of ways to describe Albany as a political version of clown school. Perhaps it is time, then, that they examine what the state of the state says about them. If one believes that people in a democracy get the government they deserve, then we in New York should be unable to look in the mirror without cringing.

We overwhelmingly elected a governor, Eliot Spitzer, who turned out to be hooked on prostitutes. His replacement, David A. Paterson, was never thought of as governor material and now has approval ratings at Cheney levels, somewhere in the subbasement. Albany under Governor Paterson is reminiscent of Afghanistan: nominally commanded by a weak leader, but with powerful warlords ascendant.

We elected a state comptroller, Alan G. Hevesi, who was forced out of office by scandal. Now, some of his closest associates have been indicted on charges of bribery and grand larceny. A reasonable person may infer that Mr. Hevesi either knew about these shenanigans or was out of touch to the point of dereliction.

To boot, we have an appointed United States senator, Kirsten E. Gillibrand, who immediately upon taking office swiveled on so many major issues that you could have suffered whiplash trying to keep up.

Yes, we New York voters have a lot to account for in our choices. Nor is the reckoning limited to statewide officials. The roster of lower-level politicians who have sat in the back of police cars or worn orange jumpsuits has grown depressingly long.

The former State Senate majority leader, Joseph L. Bruno, has been indicted on federal corruption charges. Former State Senator Guy J. Velella of the Bronx went to jail because of his sticky fingers. Former Assemblyman Clarence Norman Jr. of Brooklyn is in prison for crimes that include extortion. Former Assemblywoman Diane M. Gordon of Brooklyn is also in prison, for bribe-taking. Ditto for former Assemblyman Brian M. McLaughlin of Queens, for racketeering.

But wait, as they say on late-night television, there’s more.

Assemblyman Anthony S. Seminerio of Queens is charged with bribery. Former State Senator Efraín González Jr. of the Bronx pleaded guilty to mail fraud, and former Assemblyman Roger L. Green of Brooklyn to larceny. Former Assemblywoman Gloria Davis of the Bronx did time for bribery.

An assortment of charges, including drunken driving and assault, have stained State Senator Kevin S. Parker of Brooklyn, Assemblymen Karim Camara of Brooklyn and Adam Clayton Powell IV of Manhattan, and former State Senators Ada L. Smith and John D. Sabini, both of Queens.

(MORE)

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This is where Pensiongate started, and has now spread to many state capitals.

Bigger than Watergate, and Cuomo is only in the fourth inning, and others are just getting to play the first inning.

VJ Machiavelli

NO MORE SCHUMER

NO MORE PELOSI

NO MORE RANGEL

NO MORE ENGEL AND HIS MILLION DOLLAR HOME IN MARYLAND

ps This is also where "King" Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner Schumer also started out.

LOOK MA, ANOTHER BLACK STAR NEWS STORY- CUOMO VS THOMAS DINAPOLI

Cuomo Vs. Thomas DiNapoli

Black Star News - ‎

By Edward Manfredonia

[Policing Wall Street] The difference between New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli and New York State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo in protecting the New York State Common Retirement Fund is the difference between night and day. Cuomo is allegedly investigating the pay-to-play scandal in the office of the New York State Comptroller. I say allegedly because Cuomo is really all bluster. Recently Cuomo announced that Carlyle/Riverstone must regurgitate some $50 million in fees, which it obtained from managing money for the New York State Common Retirement Fund (CRF). Carlyle/Riverstone is currently managing $530 million in pension funds for the CRF. Carlyle/Riverstone still keeps 20% of the profits that the CRF investment earns. Assuming 10% annual profits of approximately $50 million, Carlyle/Riverstone earns $10 million per annum- for the length of the investment usually a 10 year period. So Cuomo has permitted the big guys on Wall Street to continue to steal with little regard for the people, who voted for Cuomo. Let's contrast that with the actions of New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli against Renaissance Private Equity Partners and its alter ego Aldus Equity Partners and several other defendants. Aldus Partners was also involved in a pay-to-play scheme involving the CRF with David Loglisci and Hank Morris, who were also named as the go-betweens in the Carlyle/Riverstone imbroglio. The involvement of Loglisci, Morris and Carlyle/Riverstone has been fully detailed in a series of articles, which have appeared in The Black Star News. DiNapoli, who became Comptroller due to the ouster of Alan Hevesi for abusing taxpayer money, has decided to reform the awarding of contracts minus the bombastic antics of Cuomo.

(more)

Ranch owners tied to NY investment fraud

Billings Gazette - ‎

By RUFFIN PREVOST
Gazette Wyoming Bureau

CODY - Two wealthy investment executives with sprawling ranches near Yellowstone National Park are the subject of ongoing scrutiny in a widening public corruption investigation by federal and New York state prosecutors.

Hedge fund manager Barrett Wissman pleaded guilty in April to a New York felony charge of financial fraud for his role in an alleged kickback scheme to gain investments from the state's public employee pension fund.

Wissman, who owns a ranch near Luther, Mont., between Red Lodge and Roscoe, will pay $12 million in penalties and forfeiture to New York over three years in an agreement with the office of Attorney General Andrew Cuomo. He will be sentenced later.

David Leuschen, a Montana native, owns a ranch at Luther near Wissman's, as well as the sprawling Switchback Ranch on several thousands of acres in Wyoming and Montana, along the Clarks Fork of the Yellowstone River.

He is under investigation by Cuomo's office, as well as the Securities and Exchange Commission, for his activities in securing investments from New York pension funds. No charges have been filed against him.

Cuomo announced Thursday an agreement with Riverstone Holdings, a New York-based private equity firm where Leuschen is a founder and senior managing director.

Riverstone has agreed to pay $30 million and abide by a code of conduct to resolve questions about its role in a scheme that investigators say involved funneling kickbacks disguised as bogus "placement fees" to state pension fund managers.

In discussing the agreement Thursday, Cuomo told reporters on a conference call that "Mr. Leuschen is not included in this resolution. It is still an open matter."

According to allegations by New York investigators and a separate civil complaint filed in March by the SEC, a "pay to play" system was set up by former pension fund chief investment officer David Loglisci and Hank Morris, a political consultant.

The SEC complaint alleges that Wissman contacted Leuschen to advise him that the pension fund was seeking to invest in the energy sector and that "retaining" Morris was key to landing an investment.

Leuschen arranged through a partner firm, The Carlyle Group, to have a third firm hire Morris, and Riverstone and Carlyle later received more than $350 million in investments from New York's General Retirement Fund, the complaint alleges.

The complaint also states that Leuschen personally invested $100,000 in "Chooch," a low-budget film produced by Loglisci and his brothers.

(more)

===============================================================

It seems the Black Star News is no fan of Cuomo, and the local paper in Wyoming has a good scandal to write about.

As reported before Cuomo is only in the fourth inning and others are just getting to bat.

Stay tuned

VJ Machiavelli

NO MORE SCHUMER

NO MORE PELOSI

NO MORE RANGEL

NO MORE ENGEL AND HIS MILLION DOLLAR HOME IN MARYLAND.

LOOK MA SEAN HARRIGAN HAS A MILLION FRIENDS

With Labor Leader on California Pension Boards, Financial Firms Fattened union campaign Fund

by Sharona Coutts, ProPublica, and Seth Hettena, Special to ProPublica - June 13, 2009

Financial firms showered nearly $1 million in political cash on the United Food and Commercial Workers union in California while a top union leader sat on the boards of big public pension funds in the state, an analysis of campaign finance records shows.

Sean Harrigan, the union's former executive director, is now under scrutiny from the Securities and Exchange Commission, which has charged several firms and individuals with making improper payments to win investments from pension funds in New York and New Mexico.

Harrigan, 62, stepped down from the board of the Los Angeles Fire and Police Pension system last month in response to the SEC inquiry into his dealings while at the fund. He was appointed to the LA fund in 2005 after serving as a trustee and board president at CalPERS from 1999 through late 2004.

His lawyer, Mark Byrne, said in a prepared statement that Harrigan is cooperating with the SEC inquiry and that, "as far as Mr. Harrigan is aware, no one has been provided favorable treatment, or penalized, for giving or not giving" to the union.

Harrigan's union, however, pulled about a third of the $3 million it raised from 2001 to 2006 from players in the financial industry. About $500,000 came from donors who had business dealings with CalPERS, then the nation's biggest pension fund.

Other major unions in California received few, if any, campaign contributions from investment or money management companies, a review of donations shows.

Campaign contributions have figured in a wide-ranging investigation of pension fund kickbacks in New York, where Attorney General Andrew Cuomo issued an indictment naming several prominent investment firms that allegedly took part in a vast pay-to-play scheme.

Among them is Wetherly Capital Group, a Los Angeles firm that earns fees by introducing money managers to pension funds. Wetherly paid Harrigan a consulting fee three years ago, disclosure filings show.

None of the financial companies contacted about the UFCW contributions would comment about their interest in backing workers who ring up groceries and stock supermarket shelves. Nor did union officials respond to repeated interview requests.

The unfolding pension scandal has cast a critical light on how closely systems like CalPERS police themselves and the firms they employ to manage their holdings. State and local government retirement systems in the U.S. hold an estimated $2.2 trillion in assets. Now, the SEC is considering whether to ban financial firms from managing pension funds if they've made recent campaign contributions to trustees.

Critics say such contributions invite cronyism and undermine public trust in the system.

"I think it's corruption," said former California lawmaker Keith Richman, president of the nonprofit watchdog group California Foundation for Fiscal Responsibility. "It is not putting money in the individual's pocket, but it is corruption of our political system."

Firms Hit Up on Harrigan's Behalf

As CalPERS board president from 2003 to December 2004, Harrigan was in a position to influence which investment firms won contracts to manage retirement money, according to present and former CalPERS officials.

Through his lawyer, Harrigan declined to say whether he personally requested donations from those firms for union events. But a document obtained by ProPublica states that "investment partners" had complained to CalPERS about solicitations for the union "on behalf of the Board President."

CalPERS spokeswoman Pat Macht said the $183 billion fund doesn't have a policy restricting political fundraising by board members from firms that have business with the system.

Allison Hayward, a campaign finance specialist at George Mason University School of Law, said reports that third parties asked for contributions on Harrigan's behalf were troubling.

"You don't have to explain that (investment firms) are going to be at a competitive disadvantage if they don't contribute," she said. "The implication is, 'Nice business you have here. Shame if something were to happen to it.'"

While on CalPERS' board, a volunteer job, Harrigan served as the UCFW's executive director and international vice president and was paid about $195,000 annually, according to disclosure forms. By 2007, he had retired from both union positions.

Harrigan remains a member of the State Personnel Board, where he earns a salary of $40,670. Among other duties, the personnel board is responsible for filling one of the 13 CalPERS board positions.

Harrigan's tenure at CalPERS overlapped with one of his union's biggest election battles.

Proposition 75 on the 2005 ballot would have required member consent before unions could spend dues on political campaigns. The UFCW, squaring off against against Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and corporate backers, spent nearly $1 million to defeat the measure.

About half of the $1 million in finance sector contributions the union’s PAC received from 2001 through 2006 came from firms that had investments or had other contracts with CalPERS, as listed in the fund’s annual reports.

(more)

$30M payback for pension fund

New York Daily News - ‎Jun 12, 2009‎

... in 2003 Riverstone and Carlyle retained a company tied to then Controller Alan Hevesi's chief political consultant, Hank Morris, Cuomo said. ...

Settlement announced in pension probe

Elmira Star-Gazette - ‎Jun 11, 2009‎

That company was associated with Hank Morris, chief political aide to Hevesi. Hevesi, who resigned in late 2006 after admitting to using state workers to ...

Ranch owners tied to investment scandal

Casper Star-Tribune Online - ‎Jun 11, 2009‎

... a pay to play system was set up by former pension fund chief investment officer David Loglisci and Hank Morris, a political consultant. ...

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Pensiongate gets bigger and bigger as the days go by, Cuomo is only in the fourth inning, and others are only in the first inning.

Boy "king" Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner Schumer's "BRAIN" Hank Morris and his buddies sure know how to make a living and at the same time elect Democrats to office.

So far were ever you turn you find a Democrats hitting home runs. I am sure as we go into the 9th inning we will find a Republican or two, but for now it seems the Democrats are way ahead it will be hard for the Republicans to catch up.

VJ Machiavelli

NO MORE SCHUMER

NO MORE PELOSI

NO MORE RANGEL

NO MORE ENGEL AND HIS MILLION DOLLAR HOME IN MARYLAND