AMLAC 2009 Speaker Profile: Les Joseph, US DOJ

Lester Joseph
Principal Deputy Chief- Asset Forfeiture & Money Laundering
US Department of Justice

Principal deputy chief, Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section of the U.S. Department of Justice, Washington, he guides and assists federal prosecutors and law enforcement agencies throughout the United States in money laundering and forfeiture cases, including various “Deferred Prosecution Agreements”. He advises Justice Department officials on money laundering control legislative and prosecutorial policies and procedures and has participated in some of the landmark U.S. money laundering prosecutions, including several that established the extraterritorial reach of the U.S. law.

Don't miss Les speak on Understanding the Latest Law Enforcement Initiatives for
Identifying Trends and Preventing Fraud at the AMLAC Conference in NY from October 19-21.

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Free Web Seminar: Casinos at Risk: Best Practices for Title 31 and AML Compliance Programs in a Volatile Business Climate

AMLAC in conjunction with KPMG will be hosting a hour long free web seminar on Thursday, May 7,2009 from 1:00PM - 2:00PM EDT. Here's a brief description of the web seminar.

Today’s volatile business climate and the enhanced regulatory environment for casinos has become increasingly difficult for compliance personnel, internal auditors and security personnel. Casinos are finding themselves challenged to stay compliant in an economy conducive to unprecedented levels of risk for internal and external misconduct. How can you be sure your casino is implementing the proper strategy to protect itself from the risks associated with money laundering, terrorist financing, fraud and other financial crimes?

KPMG ForensicSM and IIR’s AMLAC & Fraud Forum have arranged for you to learn how to best prepare your casino for Title 31 examinations straight from the Department of Justice and the IRS.

What You Can Learn By Attending:

• Are your Title 31 and AML Programs suitable for today’s regulatory environment?
• What are the expectations of the DOJ and the IRS relative to a Title 31 program?
• What are your internal and external threats for fraud and misconduct?
• Considering the future direction of gaming industry regulations, how do you keep your casino pointed in the right direction.

Featured Speakers
Donna Mayer, BSA Technical Advisor (Casinos), IRS
Lester Joseph, Principal Deputy Chief, US Department of Justice
Karen Brown-Wichman, Director of Internal Audit, American Casino and Entertainment Properties (ACEP)
James Dowling, Managing Director, KPMG ForensicSM


Register for the web seminar
Mention priority code G1U2402W1BLOG



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KPMG and the KPMG logo are registered trademarks of KPMG International, a Swiss cooperative.

KPMG Forensic is a service mark of KPMG International.

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US Trustee Program Requests Authorization to Investigate SemGroup

The Office of the United States Trustee program, a section of the Justice Department, has requested authorization to look into SemGroup’s bankruptcy filing on the basis that fraudulent trading could have caused the collapse of the company. As reported in this article from Reuters, SemGroup, had filed bankruptcy on July 22^nd claiming a $3.2 billion loss on energy futures and derivatives trades. In an official document Roberta DeAngelis, from the US Trustees office stated:

"The dearth of information available regarding the trading strategy and its impact upon the value of the debtor's businesses has caused significant unrest and concern among the debtor's customers, suppliers, lenders and investors"

The official word from SemGroup is that they are willing to cooperate completely with the investigation. This, however, is not the only investigation that is underway for the company. Federal Investigators are already checking into the matter of whether or not proper disclosure was made to investors regarding liquidity issues of the subsidiary group SemGroup Energy Partners LP.

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One of the Largest Hacking and Identity Theft Case Prosecuted

Believed to be the largest hacking and identity theft case prosecuted by the Department of Justice, 11 people have been charged with: conspiracy, computer intrusion, fraud, and identity theft. This report from the Associated Press states that Attorney General Michael Mukasey, in a prepared statement said:

"They used sophisticated computer hacking techniques, breaching security systems and installing programs that gathered enormous quantities of personal financial data, which they then allegedly sold to others or used themselves. And in total, they caused widespread loses by banks, retailers, and consumers."

Retailers affected include, TJX Cos, BJ's Wholesale Club, OfficeMax, Boston Market, Barnes & Noble, Sports Authority, Forever 21 and DSW. TJX reported that 45.7 million cards numbers could have been possible stolen, while later, some of the banks have said that the number may have been closer to 100 million. Regardless, this resulted in many retailers facing negative publicity.

The report also mentions that countries of the 11 indicted include the U.S., Estonia, Ukraine, China, and Belarus. One of the persons of interest is only known by an online alias, and it has yet to be revealed where they are from.

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Army Officer and his Wife Plead Guilty To a Money Laundering Scheme Involving the Department of Defense

The Department of Justice reports that 43 year old John Cockerham, a U.S. army officer, has pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bribery and one count of money laundering. Cockerham’s wife, Melissa Cockerham, pleaded guilty to one count of money laundering.

John while deployed in Kuwait was responsible for awarding contracts for services to be delivered to troops in Iraq. John received up to $9 million for awarding illegal contracts, and then directed the contractors to pay his wife and sister to hide the fact that he was accepting bribes. Melissa stored the cash in safe deposit boxes in both Kuwait and Dubai.

John and Melissa have been cooperating with the government in an effort to retrieve the money from overseas banks.

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