Disgraced lawyer Marc Dreier will plead guilty May 11 to money laundering and other charges in an alleged scheme to sell $700 million in fictitious promissory notes, his lawyer said Monday.
Via WSJ:
Gerald L. Shargel, Dreier’s lawyer, said his client will enter a guilty plea to all the charges in a superseding indictment unsealed in March – conspiracy, securities fraud, money laundering and five counts of wire fraud. Dreier will plead guilty without a deal in place with the government, Shargel said. His lawyer had previously indicated they expected a quick resolution of the case.
Prosecutors have alleged Dreier sold about $700 million in fake promissory notes and misappropriated client funds from his law firm. The out-of-pocket loss to investors and clients when the fraud was discovered in December was more than $400 million, the government has said. The overall scheme allegedly ran from 2004 to 2008.
Dreier also is facing civil charges by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, filed in December, and his assets have been frozen. His law firm, Dreier LLP, filed for bankruptcy protection on Dec. 16.
I don’t have anything to add specifically about Dreier, but I am wondering if these types of crimes are more frequent these days or if tales of financial crimes are just getting more coverage. It seems we live in an age where every week somebody is accused of a multibillion dollar fraud; I wonder if this constant reporting is contributing to our feeling of financial doom.
When little girls start vanishing or shark attacks start happening, they become full-time news fodder and create panic. It seems to me the same thing is happening here but with more severe circumstances. Every time a story of fraud is reported, citizens become that much more worried about money, and I think it might have a small effect on the overall economy.
There is no way to measure this, of course, but it’s my present working theory.
