CMKM Diamonds Inc. (fka CMKX)

[HndtoHnd]

For those that do not believe corruption and "Master Plams" happen out there in the REAL WORLD, here you go. A "Tidbit" of what is to come.


Posted By: jackdaw
Post Time: 1/31/2007 23:47

Senate report claims SEC 'obstructed' trading probe
By Jeremy Grant in Washington
Published: February 1 2007 02:00 | Last updated: February 1 2007 02:00

The Securities and Exchange Commission's handling of an investigation into an insider trading probe had "all the earmarks of an obstruction of justice", an interim report by two leading US senators yesterday said.

The regulator has been embroiled in a controversy over whether it blocked Gary Aguirre, a former lawyer in its enforcement division, from seeking testimony from John Mack, Morgan Stanley chief executive, on trades involving hedge fund Pequot Capital.

Mr Aguirre was fired after he said he was told by colleagues that his investigation had been blocked.

The case has been subjected to three congressional hearings since the controversy erupted six months ago. Chuck Grassley and Arlen Specter, two senators chairing the hearings, launched their own inquiry into the case after their suspicions of a possible SEC cover-up persisted.

In releasing their interim findings on the Senate floor, both men said an investigation into Pequot had been "plagued with problems from the beginning to its abrupt conclusion".

The sacking of Mr Aguirre had been "highly suspect", while a probe into the events by the SEC's own inspector-general had been "both seriously and fatally flawed".

Mr Grassley said: "Taken together, these findings paint a picture of a troubled agency that faces serious questions about public confidence in the integrity of its investigations and its ability to protect all investors large and small. The SEC should have taken Mr Aguirre's allegations more seriously. Instead . . . it circled the wagons and shot a whistleblower - an all too familiar practice in Washington . . . where whistleblowers are as -welcome as a skunk at a -picnic."

Both senators called on the SEC to re-open the Pequot case and on the agency to consider "meaningful reforms". A final report would be released "in the near future".

SEC spokesman John Nester said: "We have not yet had the opportunity to read the interim final report, but we respect and appreciate the oversight role of the Congress and we have fully co-operated at every stage of the review. We will carefully consider the report's findings and recommendations."

Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2007

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0dff7fea-b19a-11db-b901-0000779e2340.html