Drug makers flooded US with billions of opioid pills as epidemic surged, data shows

Statistics are a blow to country’s biggest pharmaceuticals that paid millions of dollars in out of court settlements

Drug makers and distributors flooded the US with more than 75bn opioid pills in the crucial years when the country’s epidemic of painkiller addiction and deaths surged to record levels, according to previously secret data released by an American court.

The publication of the Drug Enforcement Administration statistics is a blow to some of the country’s biggest pharmaceutical firms that have paid hundreds of millions of dollars in out of court settlements in part to keep sealed evidence that they profiteered from escalating demand for opioids even as public health officials were declaring an epidemic. read more »

Claimant ‘Misapprehends’ Complexity of Whistleblower Review, SEC Says

Securities and Exchange Commission defended its review process for whistleblower awards, responding to a tipster who says the agency is taking too long

The Securities and Exchange Commission defended its process for determining whistleblower awards in a legal filing responding to a claimant who says the regulator is taking too long to make a decision.

The unidentified tipster filed a petition in April with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, saying his two-year wait for a determination on his claim was unreasonable.

The case stems from a 2016 settlement in which Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. agreed to pay $519 million to settle charges that it violated foreign bribery laws in Russia, Ukraine and Mexico. read more »

Former REIT Manager and Executives to Settle SEC Charges for more than $60 Million

The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged AR Capital LLC, its founder Nicholas S. Schorsch, and its former CFO Brian Block with wrongfully obtaining millions of dollars in connection with two separate mergers between real estate investment trusts (REITs) that were sponsored and externally managed by AR Capital. The defendants agreed to settle the matter by, among other things, cumulatively agreeing to over $60 million in disgorgement, prejudgment interest and civil penalties.

"REIT managers and their professionals have an obligation to tell the truth when making disclosures to shareholders about their compensation," said Marc P. Berger, Director of the SEC's New York Regional Office. "As we allege in our complaint, AR Capital and its partners Schorsch and Block failed to do so and benefitted themselves greatly at the expense of shareholders." read more »

Facebook should not be trusted with 'crazy' cryptocurrency plan: senators

Democratic and Republican lawmakers said on Tuesday that Facebook Inc’s track record of what they described as untrustworthiness should stand in the way of it launching a digital currency, labeling the plan “delusional” and “crazy” at a Senate hearing. read more »

ITT Cannon to Pay $11 Million to Settle False Claims Allegations for Untested Electrical Connectors

ITT Cannon has agreed to pay the United States $11 million to settle False Claims Act allegations that it supplied electrical connectors to the military that had not been properly tested, the Justice Department announced today.  ITT sold the untested connectors both directly to the Government and through distributors and other government contractors which incorporated them into technology and equipment sold to the Government.

The settlement resolves allegations filed in a lawsuit by Ralph Tatgenhorst, the former regional quality manager at ITT’s Santa Ana facility, in federal court in Los Angeles, California, under the whistleblower (or “qui tam”) provisions of the False Claims Act.  These provisions permit private individuals to sue on behalf of the Government for false claims and to share in any recovery.  Mr. Tatgenhorst will receive $2,090,000 as his share of the settlement amount. read more »

Venezuelan Investors File Lawsuit With US Court in Connection With $30M Crypto Fraud

A group of Venezuelans has filed a lawsuit with a Florida Federal Court in connection with a Ponzi scheme involving $30 million in cryptocurrency promoted by Canadian investment radio host Harold Seigel.

seven Venezuelans claim to have been lured into a $30 million worth digital currency Ponzi scheme conducted by companies such as Eagle Financial Diamond Group Inc. and Argyle Coin. The cryptocurrency involved into the fraud was reportedly pegged to diamonds.

The frauds allegedly used raised funds to pay back earlier investors. read more »