By:  LINDSEY O’NEILL, ESQ.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation recently released its ‘FBI’s Year in Review: Top News Stories of 2008’ which highlights the work of the FBI and its partners throughout the year.  The FBI press release highlights many different types of cases over the course of 2008.  Below find many of the stories mentioned in the press release, grouped by type:

FINANCIAL FRAUD, CORPORATE SCHEMES AND ECONOMIC CRIMES

01/04/08  Detroit: Eleven Indictments in International Illegal Spamming and Stock Fraud Scheme.  Eleven individuals were indicted in a wide-ranging international fraud scheme which manipulated stock prices through illegal spam e-mail promotions.

02/22/08  Miami: Five Individuals Indicted for $200 Million Hedge Fund Fraud
Michael Lauer, founder of Lancer Group Hedge Fund, and four others were indicted on conspiracy and wire fraud charges in a $200 million hedge fund fraud.

03/14/08  Cincinnati: Financial Enterprise Executives Found Guilty in $3 Billion Fraud Scheme
Five former executives of National Century Financial Enterprises were found guilty of conspiracy, fraud and money laundering in a $3 billion security fraud scheme.

03/21/08 Richmond: Indictment in $132 Million Trust Fund Scheme
Edward H. Okun, owner of The 1031 Tax Group, LLP (1031TG), was indicted for his scheme to defraud and obtain millions of dollars in client funds held by 1031TG.

06/20/08 Operation Malicious Mortgage Nets 406 IndividualsCharges in Operation Malicious Mortgage, a nationwide takedown of mortgage fraud schemes which inflicted approximately $1 billion in losses, were brought in every region of the country.

06/27/08 Washington Field Office: Major International Airlines Agree to Pay $504 Million for Price Fixing
Air France-KLM, Cathay Pacific, Martinair, and SAS have agreed to pay criminal fines for participating in a multi-year price-fixing conspiracy on international air cargo shipments.

09/05/08 Las Vegas: Bank of China Managers and Their Wives Convicted of Stealing More Than $485 Million
Xu Chaofan, Xu Guojun and their wives were convicted of racketeering and money laundering in their elaborate scheme to defraud the Bank of China through Las Vegas casinos.

10/17/08 FBI Coordinates Global Effort to Nab “Dark Market” Cyber Criminals
A two year undercover operation, Dark Market, which joined forces with international law enforcement, resulted in 56 arrests and $70 million in economic loss prevention.

12/19/08 Philadelphia: National Lampoon CEO Charged in Price Fixing Scheme
Daniel Laikin, CEO of National Lampoon, Inc., and seven other individuals were charged with manipulating the prices of publicly traded companies.

TERRORISM, ESPIONAGE AND NATIONAL DEFENSE

01/18/08 Kansas City: Islamic Charity Charged With Terrorist Financing
The Islamic American Relief Agency (IARA) and several of its former officers were charged with engaging in prohibited financial transactions. Also charged in the case was former U.S. Congressman Mark Deli Siljander.

01/25/08  Miami: Jose Padilla and Others Sentenced on Terrorism Charges 
Jose Padilla, Adham Amin Hassoun, and Kifah Wael Jayyousi were sentenced on charges of conspiracy to murder, kidnap and maim and providing material support to terrorists.

02/15/08 Washington Field Office: DOD Employee Arrested in Chinese Espionage Case
Gregg William Bergersen, a Weapons Systems Policy Analyst at the Defense Security Cooperation Agency, Department of Defense, was arrested for passing classified documents to the People’s Republic of China.

03/07/08 New Haven: Former Sailor Found Guilty of Terror Ties
Hassan Abu-Jihaad, formerly known as Paul R. Hall, was found guilty of disclosing classified information related to national defense and providing material support to an organization having ties to al-Qaeda.

04/18/08  Tampa: Egyptian Students Face Terrorism Charges
Ahmed Abdellatif Sherif Mohamed and Youssef Samir Megahed were charged with possession of explosive materials, a destructive device and a bomb-making video.

04/25/08 New York/Newark: Arrest in Conspiracy to Disclose National Defense Information to Israel
Ben Ami Kadish was arrested on charges that he participated in a conspiracy to disclose national defense information to the Government of Israel.

05/16/08 Washington Field Office: Guilty Plea in Espionage Charge Involving China
Tai Shen Kuo pled guilty to conspiracy to deliver national defense information to the People’s Republic of China.

08/08/08 Army Scientist Sole Culprit in Anthrax Attacks
Army scientist, Bruce Ivins, was determined to have acted alone in the 2001 anthrax attacks which killed five people.

11/28/08 Dallas: Holy Land Foundation and Leaders Convicted 
The Holy Land Foundation of Relief and Development and five of its leaders were found guilty of illegally funneling at least $12 million to the Palestinian terrorist group, Hamas.

12/29/08  Baltimore: Canadian Charged With Acting as Iraqi Agent 
Mouyad Mahmoud Darwish, a Canadian citizen born in Iraq, was charged with conspiring to act as an agent of Iraq under Saddam Hussein’s regime.

ORGANIZED CRIME,  GANGS AND DRUGS

02/08/08 New York: 62 Organized Crime Members and Associates Indicted on 30 Year Crime Span
As a result of a massive coordinated law enforcement initiative, sixty-two defendants associated with the Gambino, Genovese and Bonanno organized crime families were charged with crimes spanning more than three decades.

09/19/08  175 Cartel Members and Associates Arrested 
Project Reckoning, a multi-agency law enforcement effort targeting the Gulf Cartel, resulted in the arrest of 175 individuals, and the seizure of $60 million and more than 40 tons of illegal drugs.

10/24/08  San Francisco: Operation Devil Horns Nabs 29 
Twenty-nine individuals were indicted on federal racketeering charges as a result of a three-year investigation targeting Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) gang members.

HATE CRIMES

05/02/08 New Orleans: Guilty Plea in Federal Hate Crime – “Jenna Six”
Jeremiah Munsen pled guilty for his role in using nooses to threaten marchers who participated in the “Jena Six” civil rights rally.

 Read the full stories on the FBI website by clicking here.