Criminal Probe into Goldman Sachs

Bloomberg gives a fair and balanced picture of the criminal investigation:

“The federal review, which lawyers say is common in such a high-profile case, is being done by the U.S. attorney in Manhattan, said the people, who weren’t authorized to comment and spoke on condition of anonymity.

The Securities and Exchange Commission filed a civil lawsuit against Goldman Sachs on April 16 alleging fraud tied to collateralized debt obligations that contributed to the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression. The burden of proof in a criminal case would be higher than in the SEC’s civil case. Criminal allegations have to be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.

Based on public reports about the SEC matter, a criminal case may be difficult, said Douglas R. Jensen, an attorney with Park & Jensen LLP in New York. The case appears “highly complex” and Goldman Sachs would be able to make multiple arguments in its defense, he said in an interview.

“In order to proceed criminally in a case, you need to have very clear evidence of lying, cheating and stealing,” said Jensen, a former deputy chief of the criminal division of the U.S. attorney’s office in the Southern District of New York who served on that office’s securities fraud task force.

For some bizarre reason, the WSJ has this filed under “Politics.” (I guess this means the Foxification of the WSJ is continuing apace).

Here is the Journal’s take on it:

“Federal prosecutors are conducting a criminal investigation into whether Goldman Sachs Group Inc. or its employees committed securities fraud in connection with its mortgage trading, people familiar with the probe say.

The investigation from the Manhattan U.S. Attorney’s Office, which is at a preliminary stage, stemmed from a referral from the Securities and Exchange Commission, these people say. The SEC recently filed civil securities-fraud charges against the big Wall Street firm and a trader in its mortgage group. Goldman and the trader say they have done nothing wrong and are fighting the civil charges.

Prosecutors haven’t determined whether they will bring charges in the case, say the people familiar with the matter. Many criminal investigations are launched that never result in any charges.

The criminal probe raises the stakes for Goldman, Wall Street’s most powerful firm. The investigation is centered on different evidence than the SEC’s civil case, the people say. It couldn’t be determined which Goldman deals are being scrutinized in the criminal investigation.

Discuss . . .

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Sources:
Criminal Probe Looks Into Goldman Trading
WSJ, APRIL 29, 2010, 8:38 P.M.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703572504575214652998348876.html

Goldman Scrutinized by Prosecutors Reviewing SEC Case
Justin Blum and David Glovin
Bloomberg, April 29 2010
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=azKt1pYdWUAU&