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Pace Announces Lecture on U.S. Debt With Britain

Posted on March 5, 2011 by John Bailey

WPCNR WHITE PLAINS LAW JOURNAL. From White Plains Historical Society. March 5, 2011:

Barnard College History Professor Herbert Sloan will chronicle in the 2011 John Jay Lecture, the early American colonists ran up large debts to British merchants before the start of the American Revolution. The ensuing struggle took nearly three decades to resolve, and John Jay—a Founding Father and the country’s first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court—was central to the drama. Of interest to legal aficionados and history buffs alike, Professor Sloan’s lecture will recount the story of the debts that bedeviled US relations with Great Britain for nearly a generation and Jay’s role in working them out.

The lecture is Thursday March 10 at Pace University Law School, 78 North Broadway in the Robert B. Fleming Moot Courtroom,4 PM

Professor Sloan, a recipient of the Emily Gregory Award for Teaching Excellence at Barnard, teaches Colonial and Revolutionary history. His published works include Principle and Interest: Thomas Jefferson and The Problem of Debt (1995) and “The Earth Belongs to the Living,” in Peter S. Onuf, ed., Jeffersonian Legacies (1993). He is presently working on a book to be titled The Fall and Rise of Nancy Randolph. Interested in documentary editing, he serves on the editorial board of The Papers of Thomas Jefferson and is the chair of the editorial board of The Papers of John Jay.

SINGIN IN THE RAIN COMES TO WBT MARCH 24

Posted on March 5, 2011 by John Bailey

WPCNR STAGE DOOR. From Piaa Hass, Westchester Broadway Theatre. March 4, 2011:

The Hit Musical, Singin’ In The Rain, is an all-singing, all-dancing extravaganza opening March 24 at Westchester Broadway Theatre.

Based on one of the most celebrated and beloved movies of all time, Singin’ In The Rain jubilantly taps its way onto WBT’s stage this Spring. Reveling in parody, the musical turns the precarious birth of the “talkies” (and the demise of nearly all silent picture stars during the late 20s) into an unforgettably hilarious, light-hearted romantic comedy.

Singin’ In The Rain has been described as “one of the best musicals of all time” featuring some of the best loved comedy routines, dance numbers, and songs ever written, including “Good Morning,” “Make ‘em Laugh,” “Moses Supposes,” “You Were Meant For Me” and, of course, “Singin’ in the Rain.”

The musical was adapted by Broadway legends, Betty Comden and Adolph Green, from their own original award-winning screenplay of the 1952 hit musical film that starred Debbie Reynolds and Gene Kelly. Lyrics by Arthur Freed and music by Nacio Herb Brown. The WBT production, Directed by Richard Stafford and starring Jeremy Benton and Shannon O’Bryan, will run from March 24 through June 12th, 2011.

Singin’ features:

Shannon M. O’Bryan ( Kathy Selden) B’way: 42nd Street, Irving Berlin’s White Christmas, Encores!: Follies, Of Thee I Sing. Starred as Peggy Sawyer in 42ND STREET at Westchester Broadway Theatre and performed the role all over the U.S and in Moscow, Russia. Some Tours/Regional credits include, Irving Berlin’s White Christmas (Judy Haynes), An American in Paris (Mimi), Face the Music ,Grease (Sandy), and Gypsy (Dainty June) 42nd Street 1st national (Peggy).

Jeremy Benton (Don Lockwood) Broadway: 42nd Street (w/Shirley Jones). Film: The Producers Tours/Regional: 42nd Street, Irving Berlin’s White Christmas (Original Cast Recording), Kennedy Center’s Mame (w/Christine Baranski) Premieres: The Witches of Eastwick (w/Marc Kudisch), Lone Star Love (w/Randy Quaid), Ace (w/Emily Skinner), An American In Paris (w/Harry Groener), Stormy Weather(w/Leslie Uggams), Backwards In High Heels (played Fred Astaire), Reel To Real: The Movies Musical (Beijing/Edinburgh debut). Favorites include Billy Lawlor in 42nd Street, Bobby Child in Crazy For You, Billy Crocker in Anything Goes, Pat Gilbert in State Fair, Harry Bailey in A Wonderful Life, and Bob Hope in CAGNEY!

Show Times:

Wednesday & Thursday Matinees: Lunch: 11:30am &. Show: 1pm.

Thursday Friday and Saturday Evenings: Dinner: 6:30pm. & Show: 8pm

Sunday Matinees: Lunch: 12pm &. Show: 1:30pm.

Sunday Evenings: Dinner: 5:30pm. & Show: 7pm

Reservations: Call (914)-592-2222. Also at: www.BroadwayTheatre.com

Group Reservations: Discounts for Groups of 20 or More: Call 592-2225.

Stealing Trade Secrets: 3 Years in Prison for Trader

Posted on March 5, 2011 by John Bailey

WPCNR POLICE GAZETTE. Special to WPCNR from the Federal Bureau of Investigation. March 2, 2011:

PREET BHARARA, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that SAMARTH AGRAWAL, a former trader at Société Générale (“SocGen”), was sentenced in Manhattan federal court to 36 months in prison for theft of trade secrets and interstate transportation of stolen property charges. AGRAWAL was found guilty on November 19, 2010, by a jury of stealing proprietary computer code used in SocGen’s high-frequency trading business and of interstate transportation of the stolen code. U.S. District Judge JED S. RAKOFF imposed the sentence on AGRAWAL.

Manhattan U.S. Attorney PREET BHARARA said: “Aggressive protection of intellectual property is essential to America’s current economic prosperity and future success. Today’s sentence confirms that theft of intellectual property by people like Agrawal is a serious federal offense that can lead to substantial jail time.”

According to the evidence presented at trial and at the sentencing hearing:

From March 2007 to November 2009, AGRAWAL worked at SocGen’s New York offices, first as a quantitative analyst and then as a trader in SocGen’s High Frequency Trading Group. Over the past several years, SocGen has spent millions of dollars developing a computer system and associated computer code (the “Code”) that allowed SocGen to engage in sophisticated, high-speed trading on various securities markets.

The Code and its associated trading programs have generated millions of dollars in profits for SocGen. SocGen has taken several steps to protect the confidentiality of the Code, including limiting access to only those employees whose jobs require it, and then to only those portions of the Code related to their job; monitoring its computer systems and restricting electronic transfers outside of its computer systems; and preventing the computers used by individuals in the High Frequency Trading Group from making portable electronic copies of the Code.

In April 2009, AGRAWAL was promoted to the position of trader within SocGen’s High Frequency Trading Group. On Friday, June 12, 2009, AGRAWAL obtained access to a unit of the Code relating to the type of trading activity in which he was involved (“Unit A”). The next day, he printed out hundreds of pages of Unit A Code from his office at SocGen. He was caught on surveillance cameras stashing the printouts of the Code in a backpack. He then took the Code from SocGen’s New York offices to his home in New Jersey.

Before he obtained access to the Code, printed it out, and took it home, AGRAWAL had been trying to leave SocGen to find more lucrative work at another company that engaged in high-frequency trading. In particular, he was negotiating with Tower Capital Research LLC (“Tower”), a proprietary trading group and hedge fund, to develop a high-frequency trading system for Tower. During a meeting on June 8, 2009, with partners of Tower, he claimed he had a complete understanding of SocGen’s Unit A trading system and said that he wanted to build a copy of the same trading system at Tower.

In early July 2009, the Tower partners offered AGRAWAL a job which would have paid him a total of $575,000 up front, plus 20 percent of the profits generated by the copy of SocGen’s Unit A trading system that he intended to build at Tower. AGRAWAL agreed to these terms in principal in August 2009. Between June and November 2009, he met repeatedly with the Tower partners and other employees and disclosed confidential details of SocGen’s trading system to them.

On November 17, 2009, AGRAWAL submitted a letter of resignation to his supervisor at SocGen. In the months that followed, until he was supposed to start work at Tower in April 2010, he disclosed to Tower employees further details of SocGen’s trading system that he obtained from the Unit A Code he had printed out and taken home, in order to give Tower employees guidance on the structure of the high-frequency trading system he wanted them to build.

AGRAWAL was arrested on April 19, 2010, the day he was supposed to start work at Tower. A subsequent search of his apartment revealed the copy of the stolen Code, which was neatly organized in folders on his desk.

In addition to the prison sentence, Judge RAKOFF ordered AGRAWAL to serve two years of supervised release following his prison sentence.

Mr. BHARARA praised the investigative work of the FBI in this case. Mr. BHARARA also thanked Société Générale for its cooperation in the investigation.

This case is being prosecuted by the Office’s Complex Frauds Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys THOMAS G.A. BROWN and DANIEL W. LEVY are in charge of the prosecution.

Ponzi Scheme Mastermind of ATM Fraud Gets 97 Months in Prison

Posted on March 4, 2011 by John Bailey

WPCNR POLICE GAZETTE. Special to WPCNR from the Federal Bureau of Investigation. March 3,2011:

PREET BHARARA, United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that VANCE MOORE, II was sentenced Monday to 97 months in prison for his participation in an $80 million Ponzi scheme involving investments in automated teller machines (“ATMs”).

MOORE previously pled guilty in October 2010 before U.S. District Judge THOMAS P. GRIESA to one count of wire fraud conspiracy and nine counts of wire fraud for his involvement in the scheme. MOORE’s co-defendant, WALTER NETSCHI, previously was found guilty of the same charges by a federal jury after a three-week trial presided over by Judge GRIESA.

Manhattan U.S. Attorney PREET BHARARA said: “Vance Moore created an elaborate scheme to deceive investors, and he continued to lie when questions were asked. Today’s sentencing is another reminder that those who engage in Ponzi schemes will not go unpunished. This office will continue to work with our partners at the FBI to combat fraud schemes that victimize innocent investors.”

According to the evidence introduced at trial and other documents and proceedings in this case:

From 2005 through January 2008, MOORE, assisted by NETSCHI, successfully solicited more than $80 million dollars’ worth of investments in ATMs purportedly placed in various retail locations around the country, including convenience stores, gas stations, malls, and hotels. MOORE and NETSCHI claimed that the ATMs were bought by NETSCHI from third parties and serviced by MOORE. They also claimed that the ATMs would generate revenue streams for the investors, based on fees the ATMs charged for cash withdrawals.

MOORE provided investors with false documents he created showing that the investor owned ATMs were earning monthly revenue. In fact, 90 percent of the more than 4,500 ATMs were actually owned by other people or companies, or did not even exist. MOORE lied repeatedly to investors who inquired about their machines after noticing irregularities in the reports. Additionally, the monthly revenue payments that investors received were not actual revenues from ATMs, but rather other investors’ money misappropriated by MOORE and NETSCHI in order to further conceal their scheme from the victims.

The scheme also involved engaging in sham purchase negotiations with other companies that owned ATMs, so that MOORE and NETSCHI could acquire information on ATMs during the purported due diligence process. MOORE and NETSCHI then used the information and documents they obtained from these other companies to further deceive their investors, providing them with what looked like legitimate documents purporting to show that MOORE and NETSCHI actually owned and serviced the machines they claimed to have sold to the investors.

During the guilty plea proceeding on October 18, 2010, MOORE admitted that he participated in a fraudulent scheme to obtain money from investors to buy ATMs from NETSCHI that neither he nor NETSCHI ever owned. He further admitted generating false revenue reports for those ATMs to show investors the amount of money they purportedly were earning from their investment. He also admitted that the money he sent to investors as revenue from the ATMs was actually money he had gotten from other investors in the fraudulent scheme.

MOORE, 57, of Raleigh, North Carolina, was sentenced by Judge GRIESA to 97 months in prison and two years of supervised release.

NETSCHI is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge GRIESA on April 22, 2011.

Mr. BHARARA praised the work of the FBI in the investigation of this case.

The case is being handled by the Office’s Complex Fraud Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys ANTONIA M. APPS and CARRIE H. COHEN are in charge of the prosecution.