2 charged on Wall Street in mortgage meltdown
By TOM HAYS, Associated Press Writer Thu Jun 19, 7:13 PM ET
Yahoo News
NEW YORK – Two former Bear Stearns hedge fund managers were hauled into jail Thursday and charged with lying to investors about the collapse of the subprime mortgage market, perhaps signaling the start of a wave of prosecutions arising from the housing meltdown.
Ralph Cioffi and Matthew Tannin were accused of encouraging investors to stay in their hedge funds, heavily exposed to subprime mortgages, even as they knew the credit market was in serious trouble.
They were indicted on conspiracy and fraud counts, the first criminal charges to hit Wall Street in the housing market meltdown.
The eventual implosion of their two hedge funds cost investors $1.8 billion and started the domino effect that led the demise of Bear Stearns itself, which barely avoided bankruptcy in a rescue buyout by JP Morgan Chase & Co. Click Here to Read Full Story
