FBI 'Struggles' to Find Agents for Economic Crisis Wrongdoings

[dav3]

http://www.reuters.com/article/topNe...49H23S20081018

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The FBI, after years spent focusing on national security, is struggling to find agents and resources to investigate wrongdoing tied to the country's economic crisis, The New York Times reported in Sunday editions.

Citing current and former FBI officials, the Times said cutbacks in its criminal investigative workforce following the September 11 attacks left the FBI weaker in areas like white collar crime.

The cutbacks were the result of a shift in focus to terrorism and intelligence matters. More than 1,800 agents, or nearly one-third of all those in criminal programs, moved into those areas, the Times said.

"Clearly, we have felt the effects of moving resources from criminal investigations to national security," the newspaper quoted FBI Assistant Director John Miller as saying. "In white collar crime, while we initiated fewer cases over all, we targeted the areas where we could have the biggest impact. We focused on multimillion-dollar corporate fraud, where we could make arrests but also recover money for the fraud victims."

While the FBI plans to double the number of agents working on financial crimes, people within and outside the Justice Department question where the agents will come from and whether that will suffice, the Times said.

Records and interviews show that FBI officials have warned of a looming mortgage threat since 2004, and asked the Bush administration to fund such nonterrorism investigations, but the requests were denied and no new agents were approved for financial criminal investigation work, the newspaper said.

Internal FBI data shows the cutbacks were especially sharp in areas of white collar crime like mortgage fraud, with more than 600 agents lost, or more than one-third of 2001 levels.

According to Justice Department data, fraud prosecutions directed at financial institutions dropped by nearly one-half from 2000 to 2007, insurance fraud cases fell 75 percent and securities fraud decreased by 17 percent, the Times said.

"The administration's top priority since the 9/11 attacks has been counterterrorism," Justice Department spokesman Peter Carr told the paper. "In part, that's reflected by a significant investment of resources at the FBI to answer the call from Congress and the American public to become a domestic intelligence agency, in addition to a law enforcement agency."

According to the Times, several former law enforcement officials said that senior administration officials, notably those at the White House and the Treasury Department, made clear that they were concerned the Justice Department and the FBI were taking an anti-business attitude that could inhibit corporate risk-taking.

One former official said some in the administration characterized aggressive corporate prosecutions as "over-deterrence."

(Reporting by Chris Michaud)

How convenient.

[dav3]

Maybe they should take some agents off of copyright and piracy detail?

[Hank_Heartland]

That's what I call letting the hens run the chicken coop

[Fletch XXX]

stop arresting sick patients and raiding medical marijuana deispensaries to save some momney.

vote obama to end medical marijuana raids.

[DamageX]

Congrats to the winners.

[Brad Mitchell]

I don't think anyone would disagree that they should be in the market hiring for these positions. Seems like a no-brainer to me and there has never been more talent in the marketplace, especially in the financial sectors.

Brad

[Fat Panda]

yet another fucking drudgereport copy and paste....lame and gay

[CaptainHowdy]

FBI 'Struggles'


Mr. CaptainHowdy

[SDSimon]

Originally Posted by SAC

yet another fucking drudgereport copy and paste....lame and gay

Are you suggesting that the report is not true?

If you are, I would appreciate a link. I am interested in more facts about this.

Thank you very much for the additional info.

>>>Winners WIN because they NEVER GIVE UP!<<<

[DWB]

Imagine that.

I predict NOBODY being held accountable for this mess. Not a single fucking person.

The people will allow this to stand so this is what they deserve.

[DBS.US]

Originally Posted by Fletch XXX

stop arresting sick patients and raiding medical marijuana deispensaries to save some momney.

vote obama to end medical marijuana raids.

That's not the FBI, it's the the DEA
Off the subject > http://www.infowars.com/?p=3718&cp=all

[AlienQ - BANNED FOR LIFE]

Using 9/11 as some sort of excuse for growing Financial Crimes?

Thats weird. I thought all this shit happened due to de-regulating the mortgage and financial industries...

Or is artical some sort of attempt at mis-information to deflect the issue of who is responsible for the economic down turn and give blame to the FBI some how?

I do not get this shit.

[topnotch, standup guy]

Originally Posted by dav3

"While the FBI plans to double the number of agents working on financial crimes, people within and outside the Justice Department question where the agents will come from and whether that will suffice, the Times said."

Nonsense.

How about all those FBI agents who are presently wasting taxpayer dollars surfing porn on the interweb?

Perhaps this would be a good time to give them something useful to do.

[Fletch XXX]

Originally Posted by DBS.US

That's not the FBI, it's the the DEA
Off the subject > http://www.infowars.com/?p=3718&cp=all

As a member of Safe Access Now, a medical marijuana patients group, I feel it my duty to point out facts regarding medical cannabis, sorry but you are wrong.

http://www.safeaccessnow.org/article.php?id=5130#5

FBI raids are common in California. becoming more common, the FBI is more involved now than ever before etc...

http://www.safeaccessnow.org/article.php?id=5128

LAKEPORT – The Federal Bureau of Investigation and local authorities last week seized nearly 100 marijuana plants from a home whose owner said he was growing it for medicinal purposes.

Donate today folks, help fight raids on patients.

[pornguy]

Fucking amazing...

[tiger]

How many agents do they have going door to door for 2257 now?

[dav3]

Could pull a couple agents of email spam patrol also.

[Manowar]

need mulder and scully

[woj]

It's probably not easy at all to investigate this stuff, the whole mess was setup by bright accountants working for all the companies involved... it's all probably quite convoluted, it will take years and equally skilled accountants to get to the bottom of it all...

[Kudles]

Sounds like a big mess