The Department of Justice has reached a settlement of its civil forfeiture cases against assets acquired by Khadem al-Qubaisi using funds allegedly misappropriated from 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), Malaysia’s investment development fund, and laundered through financial institutions in several jurisdictions, including the United States, Switzerland, Singapore and Luxembourg.

Assistant Attorney General Stephen E. Boyd issued the following statement in support of efforts to streamline payments under the Public Safety Officer Benefit Program (PSOB) to public safety officers fatally injured while working during COVID-19:

This week, the President’s Commission on Law Enforcement and the Administration of Justice held a hearing on juvenile justice over three days via teleconference. Each teleconference featured expert witnesses who provided testimony and, subsequently, answered questions from the Commissioners.

A Hampton, Virginia, tax preparer was arrested yesterday on a federal grand jury indictment charging him with aiding and assisting in the preparation of false tax returns, theft of government funds, and failing to file tax returns, announced Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard Zuckerman of the Department of Justice’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney G. Zachary Terwilliger of the Eastern District of Virginia. The March 9, 2020, indictment was unsealed following the arrest.

A federal court in Tampa, Florida has permanently barred Steven Doletzky, formerly doing business as Liberty Tax Service, from operating a tax return preparation business and preparing federal tax returns for others, the Justice Department announced today. The court also ordered Doletzky to disgorge $175,000 of ill-gotten gains that the United States alleges he received from filing federal tax returns that claimed improper tax refunds, understated customers’ federal tax liabilities, or otherwise included false or fraudulent claims.

On March 18, a federal court ordered El Mundo Feliz, a Partnership (El Mundo), and Daniel Martinez Jr. to begin paying employment taxes to the United States on a timely basis, the Justice Department announced today.

Thank you, Sean, for your kind introduction. And thank you to CSIS for partnering with us in this conference and for your leadership and innovative thinking on critical policy issues that affect us all. I would like to take a few moments now to reflect on how the National Security Division (NSD) came to be and how, in our first decade, we have strived to achieve our twin aims: protecting the United States against national security threats while safeguarding our core freedoms.

The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that Cantor Fitzgerald & Co. has agreed to pay $3.2 million to settle charges for providing the SEC with incomplete and inaccurate securities trading information known as “blue sheet data.”…

The Securities and Exchange Commission’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) has issued two risk alerts: Examinations that Focus on Compliance with Regulation Best Interest and Examinations that Focus on Compliance with…

The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that it is providing temporary, conditional exemptive relief for business development companies (BDCs) to enable them to make additional investments in small and medium-sized businesses, including…

The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged a former executive of a financial services company with orchestrating a bribery scheme to help a client to win a government contract to build and operate an electrical power plant in the Republic of…

The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced settled charges against two advisers that self-reported as part of the Division of Enforcement’s Share Class Selection Disclosure Initiative, and a third adviser that self-reported within months…

The Securities and Exchange Commission announced it has voted to issue two exemptive orders in order to move Consolidated Audit Trail (CAT) implementation forward: (1) establishing a phased CAT reporting timeline for broker-dealers, and (2) permitting…

The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that Louis Gracia and Vanessa Horton have been named Associate Directors of the Investment Adviser/Investment Company (IA/IC) examination program in the agency's Chicago Regional Office. Together, Mr…

The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced the formation of an internal, cross-divisional COVID-19 Market Monitoring Group.  This temporary, senior-level group will assist the Commission and its various divisions and offices in (1)…

The Securities and Exchange Commission's Investor Advisory Committee will hold a public meeting on May 4, 2020, by remote means.  The meeting will begin at 2 p.m. ET, is open to the public via live webcast, and will be archived…

The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced charges against Praxsyn Corp. and its CEO for allegedly issuing false and misleading press releases claiming the company was able to acquire and supply large quantities of N95 or similar masks to…

The Securities and Exchange Commission today released the agenda for the Friday, May 8 meeting of its Small Business Capital Formation Advisory Committee, which will be hosted via video conference. The Committee will discuss the Commission’s recent…

The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that it is providing temporary, conditional relief for established smaller companies affected by COVID-19 that may look to meet their urgent funding needs through a Regulation Crowdfunding offering.…

The Securities and Exchange Commission announced that it is premiering new multimedia resources to support teachers in connection with Teacher Appreciation Week. This content builds on the Commission’s longstanding efforts to serve teachers in both their…

The Securities and Exchange Commission's Investor Advisory Committee will hold a public meeting on May 21, 2020 by remote means.  The meeting will begin at 10 a.m. ET, is open to the public via live webcast, and will be archived on…

A federal grand jury returned an indictment today charging eight individuals with conspiring to violate federal criminal copyright law by running two of the largest unauthorized streaming services in the United States, resulting in the loss of millions of dollars by television program and motion picture copyright owners.

Seattle – A 21-year-old Palmdale, California, man pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to federal crimes related to his computer hacking scheme and his possession of child pornography found on his digital devices, announced U.S. Attorney Brian T. Moran.

SAN JOSE - Anthony Scott Levandowski submitted documents today requesting that the court accept his plea of guilty to theft of trade secrets charges, announced United States Attorney David L. Anderson and Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge John F. Bennett. The documents include a request to William H. Alsup, United States District Judge, to accept a proposed plea agreement and a request to schedule a date for a sentencing hearing.

Federal authorities announced today that an ongoing cooperative effort between law enforcement and a number of private-sector companies, including multiple internet domain providers and registrars, has disrupted hundreds of internet domains used to exploit the COVID-19 pandemic to commit fraud and other crimes.

**Now Virtual at New Time** The previously scheduled Best Practices Workshop on FOIA and technology featuring the Chief FOIA Officer Council Technology Committee will now be held online.

As citizens across the nation follow public health instructions to shelter in their homes to prevent the spread of the Coronavirus Disease, victims of domestic violence and sexual abuse are facing increased risk to their own personal safety.

Many victims of domestic abuse are currently left no option than to shelter in place and to stay in their home with their abuser to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. As a result, many communities are implementing creative solutions, often working remotely and incorporating the use of technology, to protect victims and prevent violence.

On April 27, ICITAP’s Central America mission conducted a webinar titled “Pathology and Crime Scene Investigation (CSI) During the COVID-19 Pandemic” for hundreds of subject matter experts from throughout the Western Hemisphere. Chaired by ICITAP-Central America’s Attaché, the 80-minute webinar began with a pre-recorded media interview from the Dominican Republic, which highlighted the critical work currently carried out by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME) in Washington, DC.

OIP is now accepting registration for topic-specific FOIA training sessions to be offered online. 

The Department of Justice has released the agenda and list of participants for its March 11, 2020, public workshop to solicit public dialogue on the proposed vertical merger guidelines. The workshop will be the first in a two-part series hosted together with the Federal Trade Commission. The two half-day workshops will allow for a dynamic discussion about the proposed guidelines to complement the written public comments about the proposed guidelines that were submitted to the agencies.

Two commercial flooring executives, Robert A. Patrey Jr. and Kenneth R. Smith, pleaded guilty for their role in an antitrust conspiracy to rig bids and fix prices for commercial flooring services and products sold in the United States, the Department of Justice announced. The defendants are cooperating with the Justice Department’s ongoing investigation.

The Department of Justice Antitrust Division announced today that it has adopted a series of temporary changes to its civil merger investigation processes, which will remain in place during the pendency of the coronavirus (COVID-19) event. These changes will ensure that the Antitrust Division will be able to continue operations as its employees carry out their duties to protect American consumers under a mass telework directive, in accordance with health guidance from the CDC, WHO, and other health authorities.

The U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division and The Federal Trade Commission today issued a joint statement detailing an expedited antitrust procedure and providing guidance for collaborations of businesses working to protect the health and safety of Americans during the COVID-19 pandemic.