FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Thursday, February 7, 2013
Former Jewelry Company Executive Sentenced in U.s.v.i. to Pay $1.1 Million in Fines and Community Service for Illegal Trade of Protected Black Coral
Ashu Bhandari, the former president and CEO of GEM Manufacturing LLC, a U.S. Virgin Islands-based company, was sentenced Thursday in federal court in St. Thomas, U.S.V.I., for felony customs violations for his role in a scheme to illegally import protected black coral into the United States, the Department of Justice announced. Bhandari is the last defendant to be sentenced as the result of a far reaching investigation into the illegal trade in black coral. The scheme cost Bhandari’s company, GEM Manufacturing, millions of dollars in financial penalties and sent two of his trading partners to prison.
At today’s hearing, the court imposed a criminal fine of $918,950 and sentenced Bhandari to one month in jail, to be followed by one month of home confinement and one year of supervised release, during which Bhandari would be required to complete 300 hours of community service and be banned from any business venture involving coral or coral products. In addition to the fine, Bhandari will be required to pay $229,687 to the University of the Virgin Islands to be used for community service projects designed to research and protect black corals. The court recognized that Bhandari’s sentence was based, in part, on his cooperation with federal investigators in related illicit coral trafficking cases.
On Nov. 7, 2012, Ashu Bhandari pleaded guilty to one felony count of false classification of goods for his efforts to conceal his illegal importation of internationally protected black coral in 2009. GEM was in the business of manufacturing high-end jewelry and sculpture products that utilize black coral. During his term as CEO, Bhandari was responsible for ensuring the continued supply of raw black coral for the company. Black corals are considered important habitat for the deep sea marine environment and are protected by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). Each of the species of black coral is listed in Appendix II of CITES and is subject to strict trade regulations.
Bhandari admitted that by 2008, he learned that GEM’s Taiwanese suppliers of black coral could not obtain legitimate CITES certificates. In spite of this knowledge, Bhandari made a "business decision to go forward" with the Taiwanese suppliers. The Taiwanese suppliers would label the coral shipments as "plastic" in order to fool customs authorities in Hong Kong and the United States. Bhandari admitted that by 2009 he knew that the shipments he arranged on behalf of GEM were coming into St. Thomas falsely labeled.
"Mr. Bhandari actively participated in an illegal scheme to traffic in protected black coral, a trade that has helped deplete a world resource that serves as essential habitat for marine biodiversity," said Ignacia S. Moreno, Assistant Attorney General for the Environment and Natural Resources Division at the Department of Justice. "As this case clearly shows, the Department of Justice will continue to aggressively prosecute those who violate U.S. law by illegally trafficking in protected species."
"The effective stewardship of our natural resources by vigorously enforcing environmental laws is a priority of the Department of Justice," said Ronald W. Sharpe, U.S. Attorney for the District of the Virgin Islands. "This prosecution, like many cases involving the investigation and prosecution of those who set out to exploit our precious natural resources, was complex, time consuming and required the expertise of multiple law enforcement agencies. The dedication and cooperative efforts of the various law enforcement agencies involved in the successful prosecution of this matter are to be commended."
"This investigation is the culmination of a three year joint investigation led by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Office of Law Enforcement in partnership with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement-Homeland Security Investigations, U.S. Attorney’s Office, the U.S. Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division and U.S. Customs and Border Protection," said U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Resident Agent in Charge David Pharo. "This investigation serves as a great example of multiple agencies, working together to stem the tide of exploitation of internationally protected species originating in marine environments. This investigation demonstrates our commitment to combat illegal international wildlife trafficking and bring justice to those that exploit protected marine resources for personal gain no matter where they are located."
"Illegal importation and exportation of commercial quantities of CITES-protected corals is one of our Division's high priorities," said Otha Easley, Acting Special Agent in Charge for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Office of Law Enforcement's Southeast Division. "Effective enforcement of CITES helps ensure that collection of these species is sustainable and that their survival in the wild is assured."
"This sentence sends a clear message to black coral traffickers that we and our federal law enforcement partners are in the business of preventing illegal wildlife trade," said Angel Melendez, Acting Special Agent in charge of HSI San Juan and U.S.V.I. "We will continue to identify and apprehend those who exploit protected species for commercial gain."
Black coral is a precious coral that can be polished to a high sheen, worked into artistic sculptures and used in inlaid jewelry. Black coral is typically found in deep waters and many species have long life spans and are slow-growing. Using deep sea submersibles, scientists have observed that fish and invertebrates tend to accumulate around the black coral colonies. Thus, black coral communities serve important habitat functions in the mesophotic and deepwater zones. In the last few decades, pressures from overharvesting, due in part to the wider availability of scuba gear and the introduction of invasive species have threatened this group of coral. Recent seizures of illegal black coral around the world have led many to believe that black coral poaching is on the rise.
On Oct. 26, 2011, in the related case of U.S. v. GEM Manufacturing LLC, Case No. 2011-19 (D. Virgin Islands), GEM was sentenced to criminal financial penalties and forfeitures exceeding $4.47 million and three and a half years of probation that included a 10-point compliance plan that incorporated an auditing, tracking and inventory control program. GEM was also banned from doing business with its former coral supplier, Peng Chia Enterprise Co. Ltd. and its management team of Ivan and Gloria Chu. Ashu Bhandari was the individual known as "Co-conspirator X" in the related case of U.S. v. Gloria and Ivan Chu, Case No. 2010-003 (D. Virgin Islands). In January 2010, federal agents arrested the Chus as part of a sting operation in Las Vegas. The Chus were subsequently indicted in 2010 for illegally providing black coral to GEM. On June 23, 2010, Ivan Chu was sentenced to serve 30 months in prison and pay a $12,500 fine. Gloria Chu was sentenced to serve 20 months in prison and pay a $12,500 fine.
The case, developed as a result of Operation "Black Gold", was investigated by agents of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and NOAA with support from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement-Homeland Security Investigations and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Analysis of coral samples by the FWS’s National Forensics Laboratory in Ashland, Ore., was critical to the investigation. The case was prosecuted by Christopher Hale of the Justice Department’s Environmental Crimes Section, Environment and Natural Resources Division and Nelson Jones of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Tuesday, February 12, 2013
HEALTH CARE FRAUD PAYS, THE GOVERNEMNT IN RECOVERIES
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENTOF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services announce record-breaking recoveries resulting from joint efforts to combat health care fraud
Government Teams Recovered $4.2 Billion in FY 2012WASHINGTON – Attorney General Eric Holder and Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius today released a new report showing that for every dollar spent on health care-related fraud and abuse investigations in the last three years, the government recovered $7.90. This is the highest three-year average return on investment in the 16-year history of the Health Care Fraud and Abuse (HCFAC) Program.
The government’s health care fraud prevention and enforcement efforts recovered a record $4.2 billion in taxpayer dollars in Fiscal Year (FY) 2012, up from nearly $4.1 billion in FY 2011, from individuals and companies who attempted to defraud federal health programs serving seniors and taxpayers or who sought payments to which they were not entitled. Over the last four years, the administration’s enforcement efforts have recovered $14.9 billion, up from $6.7 billion over the prior four-year period. Since 1997, the HCFAC Program has returned more than $23 billion to the Medicare Trust Funds.
These findings, released today in the annual HCFAC Program report, are a result of President Obama making the elimination of fraud, waste and abuse, particularly in health care, a top priority for the administration.
The success of this joint Department of Justice and HHS effort was made possible by the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT), created in 2009 to prevent fraud, waste and abuse in the Medicare and Medicaid programs and to crack down on individuals and entities that are abusing the system and costing American taxpayers billions of dollars. These efforts to reduce fraud will continue to improve with new tools and resources provided by the Affordable Care Act.
"This was a record-breaking year for the Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services in our collaborative effort to crack down on health care fraud and protect valuable taxpayer dollars," said Attorney General Holder. "In the past fiscal year, our relentless pursuit of health care fraud resulted in the disruption of an array of sophisticated fraud schemes and the recovery of more taxpayer dollars than ever before. This report demonstrates our serious commitment to prosecuting health care fraud and safeguarding our world-class health care programs from abuse."
"Our historic effort to take on the criminals who steal from Medicare and Medicaid is paying off: We are gaining the upper hand in our fight against health care fraud," said Secretary Sebelius. "This fight against fraud strengthens the integrity of our health care programs and helps us fulfill our commitment to our seniors."
About $4.2 billion stolen or otherwise improperly obtained from federal health care programs was recovered and returned to the Medicare Trust Funds, the Treasury and others in FY 2012. This is an unprecedented achievement for the HCFAC Program, a joint Justice Department and HHS effort to coordinate federal, state and local law enforcement activities to fight health care fraud and abuse.
The administration is also using tools authorized by the Affordable Care Act to fight fraud, including enhanced screenings and enrollment requirements, increased data sharing across the government, expanded recovery efforts for overpayments and greater oversight of private insurance abuses.
Since 2009, the Justice Department and HHS have improved their coordination through HEAT and increased the number of Medicare Fraud Strike Force teams to nine. The Justice Department’s enforcement of the civil False Claims Act and the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act have produced similar record-breaking results. These combined efforts coordinated under HEAT have expanded local partnerships and helped educate Medicare beneficiaries about how to protect themselves against fraud. In FY 2012, the two departments continued their series of regional fraud prevention summits, and the Justice Department hosted a training conference for federal prosecutors, FBI agents, HHS Office of Inspector General agents and others.
The strike force teams use advanced data analysis techniques to identify high-billing levels in health care fraud hot spots so that interagency teams can target emerging or migrating schemes as well as with chronic fraud by criminals masquerading as health care providers or suppliers. In July, Attorney General Holder and Secretary Sebelius announced the launch of a ground-breaking partnership among the federal government, state officials, leading private health insurance organizations and other health care anti-fraud groups to share information and best practices to improve detection of and prevent payments to scams that cut across public and private payers.
In FY 2012, the Justice Department opened 1,131 new criminal health care fraud investigations involving 2,148 potential defendants, and a total of 826 defendants were convicted of health care fraud-related crimes during the year. The department also opened 885 new civil investigations.
The strike force coordinated a takedown in May 2012 that involved the highest number of false Medicare billings in the history of the strike force program. The takedown involved 107 individuals, including doctors and nurses, in seven cities, who were charged for their alleged participation in Medicare fraud schemes, involving about $452 million in false billings. As a part of the May 2012 takedown, HHS also suspended or took other administrative action against 52 providers using authority under the health care law to suspend payments until an investigation is complete.
Strike force operations in the nine cities where teams are based resulted in 117 indictments, informations and complaints involving charges against 278 defendants who allegedly billed Medicare more than $1.5 billion in fraudulent schemes. In FY 2012, 251 guilty pleas and 13 jury trials were litigated, with guilty verdicts against 29 defendants, in strike force cases. The average prison sentence in these cases was more than 48 months.
The new authorities under the Affordable Care Act granted to HHS and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) were instrumental in clamping down on fraudulent activity in health care. In FY 2012, CMS began the process of screening all 1.5 million Medicare-enrolled providers through the new Automated Provider Screening system that quickly identifies ineligible and potentially fraudulent providers and suppliers prior to enrollment or revalidation to verify the data. As a result, nearly 150,000 ineligible providers have already been eliminated from Medicare’s billing system.
CMS also established the Command Center to improve health care-related fraud detection and investigation, drive innovation and help reduce fraud and improper payments in Medicare and Medicaid.
From May 2011 through the end of 2012, more than 400,000 providers were subject to the new screening requirements and nearly 150,000 lost the ability to bill the Medicare program due to the Affordable Care Act requirements and other proactive initiatives.
The Department of Justice and HHS also continued their successes in civil health care fraud enforcement during FY 2012. The Justice Department’s Civil Division Fraud Section, with their colleagues in U.S. Attorneys’ offices throughout the country, obtained settlements and judgments of more than $3 billion in FY 2012 under the False Claims Act (FCA). These matters included unlawful pricing by pharmaceutical manufacturers, illegal marketing of medical devices and pharmaceutical products for uses not approved by the Food and Drug Administration, Medicare fraud by hospitals and other institutional providers, and violations of laws against self-referrals and kickbacks. This marked the third year in a row that more than $2 billion has been recovered in FCA health care matters. Additionally, the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch, working with U.S. Attorneys’ offices, obtained nearly $1.5 billion in fines and forfeitures, and obtained 14 convictions in matters pursued under the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act.
EXERCISE COBRA GOLD 2013 GETS UNDERWAY
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| 130114-N-HI414-122 SASEBO, Japan (Jan. 14, 2013) The Whidbey Island-class amphibious dock landing ship USS Tortuga (LSD 46) is underway alongside the Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD 6) during a sea and anchor evolution. Tortuga is underway in preparation for an amphibious integration training and certification exercise and will participate in the annual multinational joint training exercise Cobra Gold. Tortuga is part of the Bonhomme Richard Amphibious Ready Group and is operating in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operation. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Gregory A. Harden II/Released) |
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Exercise Cobra Gold 2013 Kicks Off in Thailand
By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Feb. 11, 2013 - The commander of U.S. Pacific Command kicked off the longest-running U.S. military exercise in the Pacific in Thailand today, calling the 13,000 multinational participants guardians of future peace and prosperity.
Navy Adm. Samuel J. Locklear III marked the opening of the 32st iteration of Cobra Gold hosted by Thailand and the United States since 1980.
Cobra Gold began as a bilateral U.S.-Thai exercise, but expanded more than a decade ago to include other regional partners to advance their common goals and security commitments in the Asia-Pacific region, officials said.
Cobra Gold 2013, which runs through Feb. 21, brings together the militaries of United States, Thailand and five other Asian countries: Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore. Twenty additional nations have sent observers, including, for the first time, Burma.
"Whether you are a participant or an observer, or whether you have been here for 32 years or this is your first year, your being here demonstrates your country's resolve to peace and stability in this region and in the world," Locklear said at the opening ceremonies. "It is critical to building our multinational coordination, our interoperability with all of our partners in the region and to allow us to collectively respond to crises and protect the peace and prosperity of all our people."
This year's exercise will be demanding, as it prepares participants "for a broad spectrum of challenges we are going to face together," the admiral said. The ambitious training schedule includes a staff exercise, senior leader engagements and "humanitarian and civic projects we will do together, field training we will do together, [and] live-fire events we will do together," he said.
Highlights will include an amphibious assault demonstration that includes attack jets, helicopters, landing craft and small boats; small-boat and helicopter raids; a multilateral noncombatant evacuation operation; a combined arms live-fire exercise; and jungle warfare and chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear training.
All are designed, Locklear said, to "replicate the dynamic environment we find ourselves in today and [expect] in the future." He challenged the participants to take advantage of the training opportunities at Cobra Gold to build the bonds and capabilities that ensure they will be prepared.
"Working together, we will meet the challenges and forge a brighter future for the region and the world," he said.
Marines with 3rd Marine Expeditionary Force's Marine Wing Support Squadron 172, Marine Aircraft Group 36, arrived in Thailand last week to partner with Royal Thai Marines to build a schoolhouse at Ban Nam Chiao Elementary School in Lam Ngob district. Another civic project planned during the exercise is construction of a one-story multipurpose building for the Baan Hua Wang Krang School in Thailand's Muang district.
$50,000 AWARDED TO CHICAGO SCHOOLS FOR RECOVERY FROM SHOOTINGS
The U.S. Department of Education's Office of Safe and Healthy Students has awarded Chicago Public Schools (CPS) an Immediate Project School Emergency Response to Violence (SERV) grant totaling nearly $50,000. The grant will provide assistance for recovery efforts following 35 shootings this past year at four high schools in the Greater Englewood community.
Project SERV grants provide critical support to districts that have experienced a significant traumatic event and need resources to respond, recover, and re-establish safe environments for students. The Office of Safe and Healthy Students has awarded more than $29 million to 99 grantees, including CPS, since the grant program began in 2001.
"These grants provide support to students, educators and communities impacted by these senseless shootings," U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said. "Tragic events damage students and entire communities, and disrupt teaching and learning. These funds will support Chicago schools as they continue to recover from these acts of violence and work to make the community safer so all children can live free of fear."
Chicago Public Schools, the third largest school district in the nation, has been impacted by the city's violence this past year. Numerous students have been shot on their way to and from their schools, and reactions and responses to the violence have resulted in high rates of disciplinary infractions, gang incidents, and fights and arrests. There also has been an increase in the amount of instructional time lost due to an increased number of suspensions and high absenteeism rates.
CPS applied for a Project SERV grant to support a project designed to restore the learning environment and immediately respond to any acts of violence that would affect teaching and learning. CPS proposes to build from its Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports model of behavior management and its Response-to-Intervention model. These strategies provide academic support to create a responsive counseling program that integrates the principles of psychological first aid, conflict resolution and trauma-informed practice.
Project SERV would provide funding for a coach to train practitioners, organized into school-based teams, to identify, assess and manage student responses to violence, grief and loss. The school-based teams that comprise the counseling program will provide services and implement activities designed to reduce conflict, promote coping and healing, and facilitate teaching and learning.
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| School. Credit: U.S. Department Of Defense. |
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
U.S. Department of Education Awards Nearly $50,000 to Help Chicago Public Schools Recover from Multiple Shootings The U.S. Department of Education's Office of Safe and Healthy Students has awarded Chicago Public Schools (CPS) an Immediate Project School Emergency Response to Violence (SERV) grant totaling nearly $50,000. The grant will provide assistance for recovery efforts following 35 shootings this past year at four high schools in the Greater Englewood community.
Project SERV grants provide critical support to districts that have experienced a significant traumatic event and need resources to respond, recover, and re-establish safe environments for students. The Office of Safe and Healthy Students has awarded more than $29 million to 99 grantees, including CPS, since the grant program began in 2001.
"These grants provide support to students, educators and communities impacted by these senseless shootings," U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said. "Tragic events damage students and entire communities, and disrupt teaching and learning. These funds will support Chicago schools as they continue to recover from these acts of violence and work to make the community safer so all children can live free of fear."
Chicago Public Schools, the third largest school district in the nation, has been impacted by the city's violence this past year. Numerous students have been shot on their way to and from their schools, and reactions and responses to the violence have resulted in high rates of disciplinary infractions, gang incidents, and fights and arrests. There also has been an increase in the amount of instructional time lost due to an increased number of suspensions and high absenteeism rates.
CPS applied for a Project SERV grant to support a project designed to restore the learning environment and immediately respond to any acts of violence that would affect teaching and learning. CPS proposes to build from its Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports model of behavior management and its Response-to-Intervention model. These strategies provide academic support to create a responsive counseling program that integrates the principles of psychological first aid, conflict resolution and trauma-informed practice.
Project SERV would provide funding for a coach to train practitioners, organized into school-based teams, to identify, assess and manage student responses to violence, grief and loss. The school-based teams that comprise the counseling program will provide services and implement activities designed to reduce conflict, promote coping and healing, and facilitate teaching and learning.
DINOSAURS, WHAT HAPPENED?
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| Dinosaur Photo Composite. Credit: Wikimedia Commons |
Looking for a 'Smoking Gun' in Dinosaur Die-off
Scientists determine most precise dates yet for dinosaur extinction 66 million years ago
February 7, 2013
The demise of the dinosaurs has been called the world's ultimate whodunit.
Was the cause a comet or an asteroid impact? Volcanic eruptions? Climate change?
In an attempt to resolve the issue, scientists at the Berkeley Geochronology Center (BGC) at the University of California, Berkeley, and at universities in the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, have determined that an impact event occurred at about the same time as the mass extinction of the dinosaurs.
Using a recalibrated technique for dating Earth minerals, the researchers hypothesize that impact happened 66,038,000 years ago, and that it produced the final atmospheric conditions needed to wipe out the dinosaurs.
The newly determined date of the impact is the same, within error limits, as the date for the mass extinction event, which also occurred about 66 million years ago, according to Paul Renne, BGC director.
He and colleagues report their findings in this week's issue of the journal Science.
The dates are so close, the researchers say, that it was likely that a comet or asteroid that, if not wholly responsible for the global extinction, at least dealt the death blow.
"An impact was clearly the final straw, the tipping point," said Renne. "We've shown that [the impact and extinction] are synchronous to within a gnat's eyebrow, and therefore an impact clearly played a major role in the extinction. But it probably wasn't just the impact."
The revised date clears up lingering confusion over whether the impact actually occurred before or after the extinction, which was characterized by the almost overnight disappearance from the fossil record of land-based dinosaurs and many ocean creatures, Renne said.
"Accurately dating this major extinction, including that of the dinosaurs, has long been controversial," said H. Richard Lane, program director in the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Division of Earth Sciences, which funded the research. "These new results give us a sharper view of what happened in Earth's distant past."
Renne decided to recalculate the date of the boundary between the Cretaceous and Tertiary periods--the KT boundary--after recalibrating the argon-argon method used to date rocks, which relies on the decay rate of a radioactive isotope of potassium.
The impact in question left a 110-mile-wide crater in the Caribbean off the Yucatan coast of Mexico.
Called Chicxulub (cheek'-she-loob), the crater was excavated by an object some six miles across. It threw debris into the atmosphere that can be found around the globe in the form of glassy spheres or tektites, shocked quartz and a layer of iridium-enriched dust.
"Everybody had always looked at the age for the KT boundary and compared it with the ages that we had gotten for the tektites and the melt rock from the Chicxulub crater and said, 'oh yeah, this is pretty much the same age,'" Renne said.
"But they're not. They differ by 180,000 years. From this calibration issue, I started to realize, ‘Wow, there is a real problem here.'"
Renne and colleagues dated tektites from Haiti, analyzing them using the recalibrated argon-argon technique to determine how long ago the impact occurred.
The tektite results agreed with previously recalibrated data but were more precise.
The geologists then did the same for altered volcanic ash collected from the Hell Creek Formation in Montana, the source of many dinosaur fossils--and one of the best sites to study the change in fossils from before and after the extinction.
The new extinction date is precise to within 11,000 years, and is 200,000 years earlier than the recalibrated date determined in 1993.
Despite the synchronous impact and extinction, Renne cautions that this doesn't mean that the impact was the sole cause.
Dramatic climate variation over the previous million years, including long cold snaps amid a general Cretaceous hothouse environment, probably brought many creatures to the brink of extinction.
"The impact was the coup de grace," said Renne.
"These precursory phenomena made the global ecosystem much more sensitive to even relatively small triggers, so that what otherwise might have been a fairly minor effect shifted the ecosystem into a new state."
One cause of the climate variability could have been a sustained series of volcanic eruptions in India that produced the extensive Deccan Traps, ancient rock formations that represent one of the largest volcanic features on Earth. The Deccan Traps are believed to have formed between 60 and 68 million years ago.
Renne plans to re-date those volcanic rocks.
He and colleagues also dated rocks above the KT boundary. They concluded that Earth's atmospheric carbon cycle returned to normal within about 5,000 years of the impact.
This is in stark contrast to the world's oceans, which studies show took between one and two million years to return to normal.
Renne attributes this to a sluggish recovery of pre-impact ocean circulation patterns.
The study's results also clarify some inconsistencies between different estimates for the age of the KT boundary based on Earth's orbital rhythms recorded in sedimentary rocks.
Dutch colleagues Frederik Hilgen of Utrecht University and Klaudia Kuiper of Vrije University had previously determined an age of 65,957,000 years for the boundary using this approach, which agrees with the new independent results within the margins of error.
"This study shows the power of high precision geochronology," said paper co-author Darren Mark of the Scottish Universities Environmental Research Center in Kilbride, UK, who conducted independent argon-argon analyses on samples provided by Renne.
"Many people think precision is just about adding another decimal place to a number. But it's far more exciting than that," he said.
"It's more like putting a sharper lens on a camera. It allows us to dissect the geological record at greater resolution and piece together the sequence of Earth history."
The paper's co-authors, in addition to Mark, Hilgen and Kuipler, are William Mitchell III at UC Berkeley, Alan Deino and Roland Mundil at BGC, Leah Morgan of the Scottish Universities Environmental Research Center and Jan Smit of Vrije University in Amsterdam.
In addition to funding from NSF, the work was also supported by the Ann and Gordon Getty Foundation and UC Berkeley's Esper S. Larsen Jr. Fund.
-NSF-
DRONES: U.S. NAVY TARGET AND TEST DRONES
FROM: U.S. NAVY
040623-N-5663H-001 South China Sea (June 23, 2004) - A team of Royal Brunei Armed Forces military and civilian contractors prepare "Banshee" unmanned drones for launch from the U.S. Navy's dock landing ship USS Fort McHenry (LSD 43). The drones are used as targets while conducting underway gunnery practice during the Brunei phase of exercise Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT). CARAT is a regularly scheduled series of bilateral military training exercises with several Southeast Asia nations designed to enhance the interoperability of the respective sea services. U.S. Navy photo by Journalist Seaman David J. Ham (RELEASED)
040206-N-9222M-001 Aboard USS Essex (LHD 2) Feb. 6, 2004 - One of five BQM-74 test drones launches from the amphibious assault ship USS Essex's (LHD 2) flight deck during a missile firing exercise. The test drones are remote controlled, GPS-guided missiles. Essex and the guided missile cruiser USS John McCain participated in the missile firing exercise conducted to test the ships defensive capability. During the exercise, Essex fired three NATO Sea Sparrow anti-air missiles to intercept the drones. U.S. Navy photo by Photographer’s Mate Airman Nicholas C. Messina. (RELEASED)
Monday, February 11, 2013
SECRETARY OF STATE KERRY'S STATEMENT ON THE RESIGNATION OF POPE BENEDICT XVI
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| Holy See (Vatican). Credit: CIA World Factbook. |
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENTOF STATE
Resignation of His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI
Press Statement
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
February 11, 2013
The United States is grateful to His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI for his leadership of and ministry to the world’s 1.2 billion Catholics. He has been a man of action and principle, working to promote human rights and dignity in places around the globe where they are too often denied, and a voice of clarity and conviction about our obligations as stewards of a fragile planet. As I heard Pope Benedict say during the Mass he celebrated in Washington nearly five years ago, Americans remain a people of hope and America a land of freedom and opportunity. He believes, as we do, that the qualities that have made our nation strong can also help make the world freer and more just. We have been honored to work with the Holy See during the nearly eight years of his papacy and look forward to continued collaboration in areas of common interest to our nation and to the Catholic Church. We wish Pope Benedict great peace and health and we will keep him in our prayers.
INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION UPDATE FOR FEB 11, 2013
FROM: NASA
The International Space Station update video for Feb. 11, 2013.
SEC. OF DEFENSE PANETTA EXTENDS BENEFITS TO SAME-SEX PARTNERS
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Panetta Signs Memo Extending Benefits to Same-sex Partners
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Feb. 11, 2013 - Calling it "a matter of fundamental equity," Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta today signed a memorandum to the service secretaries and the Pentagon's top personnel official extending benefits to same-sex partners of service members.
Here is the secretary's announcement of the policy change:
"Seventeen months ago, the United States military ended the policy of 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell.' We have implemented the repeal of that policy and made clear that discrimination based on sexual orientation has no place in the Department of Defense.
"At the time of repeal, I committed to reviewing benefits that had not previously been available to same-sex partners based on existing law and policy. It is a matter of fundamental equity that we provide similar benefits to all of those men and women in uniform who serve their country. The department already provides a group of benefits that are member-designated. Today, I am pleased to announce that after a thorough and deliberate review, the department will extend additional benefits to same-sex partners of service members.
"Taking care of our service members and honoring the sacrifices of all military families are two core values of this nation. Extending these benefits is an appropriate next step under current law to ensure that all service members receive equal support for what they do to protect this nation.
"One of the legal limitations to providing all benefits at this time is the Defense of Marriage Act, which is still the law of the land. There are certain benefits that can only be provided to spouses as defined by that law, which is now being reviewed by the United States Supreme Court. While it will not change during my tenure as secretary of defense, I foresee a time when the law will allow the department to grant full benefits to service members and their dependents, irrespective of sexual orientation. Until then, the department will continue to comply with current law while doing all we can to take care of all soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines, and their families.
"While the implementation of additional benefits will require substantial policy revisions and training, it is my expectation that these benefits will be made available as expeditiously as possible. One of the great successes at the Department of Defense has been the implementation of DADT repeal. It has been highly professional and has strengthened our military community. I am confident in the military services' ability to effectively implement these changes over the coming months."
Panetta Signs Memo Extending Benefits to Same-sex Partners
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Feb. 11, 2013 - Calling it "a matter of fundamental equity," Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta today signed a memorandum to the service secretaries and the Pentagon's top personnel official extending benefits to same-sex partners of service members.
Here is the secretary's announcement of the policy change:
"Seventeen months ago, the United States military ended the policy of 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell.' We have implemented the repeal of that policy and made clear that discrimination based on sexual orientation has no place in the Department of Defense.
"At the time of repeal, I committed to reviewing benefits that had not previously been available to same-sex partners based on existing law and policy. It is a matter of fundamental equity that we provide similar benefits to all of those men and women in uniform who serve their country. The department already provides a group of benefits that are member-designated. Today, I am pleased to announce that after a thorough and deliberate review, the department will extend additional benefits to same-sex partners of service members.
"Taking care of our service members and honoring the sacrifices of all military families are two core values of this nation. Extending these benefits is an appropriate next step under current law to ensure that all service members receive equal support for what they do to protect this nation.
"One of the legal limitations to providing all benefits at this time is the Defense of Marriage Act, which is still the law of the land. There are certain benefits that can only be provided to spouses as defined by that law, which is now being reviewed by the United States Supreme Court. While it will not change during my tenure as secretary of defense, I foresee a time when the law will allow the department to grant full benefits to service members and their dependents, irrespective of sexual orientation. Until then, the department will continue to comply with current law while doing all we can to take care of all soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines, and their families.
"While the implementation of additional benefits will require substantial policy revisions and training, it is my expectation that these benefits will be made available as expeditiously as possible. One of the great successes at the Department of Defense has been the implementation of DADT repeal. It has been highly professional and has strengthened our military community. I am confident in the military services' ability to effectively implement these changes over the coming months."
NEWS FROM AFGHANISTAN FOR FEBRUARY 11, 2013
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| Partrol In Afghanistan. Credit: U.S. Marine Corps. |
Combined Force Searching for Taliban Leader Detains Insurgents
Compiled from International Security Assistance Force Joint Command News Releases
WASHINGTON, Feb. 11, 2013 - A combined Afghan and coalition security force in the Maiwand district of Afghanistan's Kandahar province today detained four insurgents while searching of a senior Taliban leader, military officials reported.
The sought-after Taliban leader allegedly coordinates complex attacks and facilitates distribution of insurgent rockets, mortars, rifles and improvised explosive devices, officials said.
Also today, a combined force in Wardak province's Sayyidabad district arrested a Taliban leader believed to organize, facilitate and conduct IED attacks. The security force also detained two suspected insurgents and seized a firearm.
In Afghanistan operations yesterday:
-- In Kunar province's Ghaziabad district, a precision airstrike killed two armed insurgents.
-- Taliban leaders Afshin and Ismail were killed in Logar province's Baraki Barak district. Afshin was directly involved in a Dec. 24 attack that killed an American service member and a Dec. 28 attack that killed an Afghan soldier. Ismail was the district's deputy Taliban leader for the winter. He issued guidance on attacks against Afghan and coalition forces and financed the acquisition of IED-making materials, rockets and ammunition for heavy weapons. The security force also seized hand grenades and an assault-rifle with associated gear and ammunition.
-- A combined force arrested two Taliban leaders in Kunduz province's Kunduz district. One is accused of gathering materials and facilitating logistics for IED attacks against Afghan government officials and Afghan and coalition forces. The second is believed to be an IED cell member and weapons facilitator operating in the Baghlan-e Jadid district.
-- In Paktia province's Zurmat district, a combined force arrested a Taliban leader accused IED attacks against Afghan and coalition forces. He is also believed to have overseen nearly 45 insurgent fighters. The security force also detained another suspected insurgent and seized an assault rifle with associated gear and ammunition.
In Feb. 9 operations:
-- A precision strike in Kandahar province's Maiwand district killed Taliban leader Abdul Baki, also known as Ruzi. He was known to operate as part of an extensive insurgent network in Uruzgan, Helmand and Kandahar provinces. He was responsible for coordinating complex attacks against Afghan and coalition forces using suicide bombers.
-- A combined force in Khost province's Sabari district detained a Haqqani network leader believed to be responsible for attacks on Afghan and coalition forces. He also accused of weapons and ammunition facilitation and coordinating the transfer of IEDs and weapon systems. The security force also detained another suspected insurgent and seized IED-making materials, homemade explosives, ammunition, hand grenades, and mortar rocket charges.
-- In Nimroz province's Khash Rod district, a combined force arrested a Taliban facilitator believed to have coordinated the movement of lethal aid, weapons and ammunition to insurgent networks throughout Helmand province's Nad-e Ali district. He is accused of being directly responsible for preparing, organizing and transporting a large shipment of illegal material and directing fighters in ambush attacks against Afghan and coalition forces. The security force also detained another suspected insurgent.
-- A combined force in Baghlan province's Burkah district arrested an Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan leader believed to oversee intelligence operations and IED emplacement. He is also accused of providing safe haven for Taliban insurgents traveling through Burkah district. The security force also detained another suspected insurgent.
In a Feb. 8 operation, a combined force in Kandahar province's Panjwai district arrested a Taliban leader who operated out of central Kandahar City. He is believed responsible for organizing IED operations targeting Afghan and coalition forces. The security force also detained two other suspected insurgents.
A TEACHER AND MILITARY DRIVER
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| Air Force Senior Airman Denice Luke drives a 60 K-loader at a base in Southwest Asia, Feb. 8, 2013. Luke is deployed from Robins Air Force Base, Ga. U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Master Sgt. George Thompson |
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Face of Defense: Reservist Enjoys Dual Careers
By Air Force Senior Master Sgt. George Thompson
386th Air Expeditionary Wing
SOUTHWEST ASIA, Feb. 8, 2013 - For one airman assigned to the 386th Expeditionary Logistics Readiness Squadron, being a reservist allows her time to pursue other passions while also serving her country
"It's like living two completely different lives," Senior Airman Denice Luke said. "That's why I like it so much."
Luke is an air transportation journeyman deployed from Robins Air Force Base, Ga., to one of the busier aerial hubs in the Air Force Central Command area of responsibility. From Dec. 15 through Jan. 15, Luke processed 9,118 passengers, 4,142 tons of cargo and serviced 435 aircraft, which culminated in her selection as flight, squadron, group and, ultimately, 386th Air Expeditionary Wing airman of the month.
From basic forklifts and mine-resistant, ambush-protected vehicles to 25 K-loaders and her confessed favorite vehicle, the 60 K-loader, driving is in her nature.
"I like to drive in general. I just get in my car and drive," Luke said. "My dad is a truck driver. He drives cross-country moving people, and I've always wanted to learn how to drive his 18-wheeler. So the 60K kind of feels like an 18-wheeler to me."
When Luke is not making the six-hour trip from her home in North Carolina to her reserve unit at Warner Robins one weekend a month, she is a first-year certified elementary and special education teacher.
"I don't do it for the money or the recognition," she said. "I've wanted to be a teacher since I was in second grade. Teaching is what I want to do with my life."
Like other reservists, Luke must balance her civilian career with her military service. "The school I was working at was willing to hire me and give me a job, but they knew I had to deploy," she said.
Between serving her country and teaching in the classroom, Luke still manages to find time to give back to the community. She recently served as chapter president of the Swing Phi Swing social fellowship organization at the University of North Carolina's Greensboro campus.
"The point of our organization is to cater to African-American women, but we cater to the whole community, performing community service at different events," Luke said. "I commit a 110 percent of my time to that."
Luke said she'll return home from her deployment next month with fond memories of her time in Southwest Asia, armed with a newfound appreciation for the Air Force and her fellow airmen.
"I learned a lot about my job, but I learned more about the people in the Air Force and leadership, which I can carry back to the classroom," she said.
SEC HALTS $150 MILLION INVESTMENT SCHEME TO DUPE FOREIGN INVESTORS AND EXPLOIT IMMIGRATION PROGRAM
FROM: U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSIONThe Securities and Exchange Commission today announced charges and an asset freeze against an individual living in Illinois and two companies behind an investment scheme defrauding foreign investors seeking profitable returns and a legal path to U.S. residency through a federal visa program.
The SEC alleges that Anshoo R. Sethi created A Chicago Convention Center (ACCC) and Intercontinental Regional Center Trust of Chicago (IRCTC) and fraudulently sold more than $145 million in securities and collected $11 million in administrative fees from more than 250 investors primarily from China. Sethi and his companies duped investors into believing that by purchasing interests in ACCC, they would be financing construction of the "World’s First Zero Carbon Emission Platinum LEED certified" hotel and conference center near Chicago’s O’Hare Airport. Investors were misled to believe their investments were simultaneously enhancing their prospects for U.S. citizenship through the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Pilot Program, which provides foreign investors an avenue to U.S. residency by investing in domestic projects that will create or preserve a minimum number of jobs for U.S. workers.
The SEC alleges that Sethi and his companies falsely boasted to investors that they had acquired all the necessary building permits and that several major hotel chains had signed onto the project. They also provided falsified documents to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) – the federal agency that administers the EB-5 program – in an attempt to secure the agency’s preliminary approval of the project and investors’ provisional visas. Meanwhile, Sethi and his companies have spent more than 90 percent of the administrative fees collected from investors despite their promise to return this money to investors if their visa applications are denied. More than $2.5 million of these funds were directed to Sethi’s personal bank account in Hong Kong.
Swift coordination between the SEC and USCIS has brought the scheme to a halt in its application stage at USCIS. The SEC filed its complaint under seal earlier this week and obtained an emergency court order to protect the remaining $145 million in investor assets that were at risk of being similarly misappropriated by Sethi and his companies. The case was unsealed this morning.
According to the SEC’s complaint filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, the EB-5 program enables foreign investors to possibly qualify for a green card if they invest $1 million (or $500,000 in a "Targeted Employment Area" with a high unemployment rate) in a project that creates or preserves at least 10 jobs for U.S. workers, excluding the investor and his or her immediate family. Sethi and his companies used the lure of a pathway to U.S. citizenship to convince investors to wire a minimum of $500,000 apiece plus a $41,500 "administrative fee" to U.S. bank accounts. These administrative fees are separate from the investment capital that the EB-5 program requires to be deployed into a job-creating enterprise. More than $11 million in administrative fees were collected with the claim that they were fully refundable to investors if their visa applications are rejected. Sethi and his companies have instead been spending those funds.
The SEC alleges that Sethi submitted false claims about the project to USCIS. Among the phony documentation that he provided to the agency in seeking preliminary approval for the project under the EB-5 program were a comfort letter from Hyatt Hotels that was not genuine, and a false backup financing letter from the Qatar Investment Authority.
The SEC’s complaint alleges that Sethi and his companies made a number of misrepresentations about the project to dupe investors. Offering materials stated that investors’ funds would help build "a convention center and hotel complex, including convention and meeting space, five upscale hotels, and amenities including restaurants, lounges, bars, and entertainment facilities." Sethi and his companies prominently featured in their marketing materials the purported participation of three major hotel chains in the project: Hyatt, Intercontinental Hotel Group, and Starwood Hotels. However, none of these hotel chains have executed franchise agreements to include a brand hotel in this project as represented to investors in the offering materials. Two of the chains actually terminated prior deals with other Sethi-related entities more than two years before these offering materials were circulated to investors.
The SEC further alleges that the offering materials falsely stated that construction would begin in summer 2012 and occupancy of the first tower would occur in early spring 2014. A search of the Chicago Building Permits database for the project address shows that the only recent permits are for a tent for a purported groundbreaking ceremony held in November 2012, a demolition permit, construction of a fence, and a minor electrical wiring permit.
According to the SEC’s complaint, the 29-year-old Sethi misrepresented to investors in offering materials that he has "over fifteen years of experience in real estate development and management, specifically in the lodging area." Offering materials also misleadingly state that the project’s developer Upgrowth LLC has "more than 35 years of experience." Illinois corporate records show that Upgrowth was just recently organized in 2010.
The SEC’s complaint alleges that Sethi, ACCC, and IRCTC violated Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5. In addition to the temporary restraining order and asset freeze granted by the court, the SEC’s complaint seeks permanent injunctions and other monetary relief.
The SEC’s investigation, which is continuing, has been conducted by Mika M. Donlon and Adam J. Eisner under the supervision of C. Joshua Felker. Patrick M. Bryan will lead the litigation. The SEC acknowledges the substantial assistance of the USCIS.
SEC CHARGES INDIVIDUAL AND COMPANIES RELATING TO FRAUDULENT CITIZENSHIP SCHEME
FROM: U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C., Feb. 8, 2013 — The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced charges and an asset freeze against an individual living in Illinois and two companies behind an investment scheme defrauding foreign investors seeking profitable returns and a legal path to U.S. residency through a federal visa program.
The SEC alleges that Anshoo R. Sethi created A Chicago Convention Center (ACCC) and Intercontinental Regional Center Trust of Chicago (IRCTC) and fraudulently sold more than $145 million in securities and collected $11 million in administrative fees from more than 250 investors primarily from China. Sethi and his companies duped investors into believing that by purchasing interests in ACCC, they would be financing construction of the "World’s First Zero Carbon Emission Platinum LEED certified" hotel and conference center near Chicago’s O’Hare Airport. Investors were misled to believe their investments were simultaneously enhancing their prospects for U.S. citizenship through the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Pilot Program, which provides foreign investors an avenue to U.S. residency by investing in domestic projects that will create or preserve a minimum number of jobs for U.S. workers.
The SEC alleges that Sethi and his companies falsely boasted to investors that they had acquired all the necessary building permits and that several major hotel chains had signed onto the project. They also provided falsified documents to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) — the federal agency that administers the EB-5 program — in an attempt to secure the agency’s preliminary approval of the project and investors’ provisional visas. Meanwhile, Sethi and his companies have spent more than 90 percent of the administrative fees collected from investors despite their promise to return this money to investors if their visa applications are denied. More than $2.5 million of these funds were directed to Sethi’s personal bank account in Hong Kong.
Swift coordination between the SEC and USCIS has brought the scheme to a halt in its application stage at USCIS. The SEC filed its complaint under seal earlier this week and obtained an emergency court order to protect the remaining $145 million in investor assets that were at risk of being similarly misappropriated by Sethi and his companies. The case was unsealed this morning.
"Sethi orchestrated an elaborate scheme and exploited these investors’ dream of earning legal U.S. residence along with a positive return on their investment in a project that was not nearly the done deal that he portrayed," said Stephen L. Cohen, Associate Director in the SEC’s Division of Enforcement. "The good news is that working closely with USCIS, we intervened early and stopped him from getting very far, and the asset freeze preserves nearly all of the money invested."
According to the SEC’s complaint filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, the EB-5 program enables foreign investors to possibly qualify for a green card if they invest $1 million (or $500,000 in a "Targeted Employment Area" with a high unemployment rate) in a project that creates or preserves at least 10 jobs for U.S. workers, excluding the investor and his or her immediate family. Sethi and his companies used the lure of a pathway to U.S. citizenship to convince investors to wire a minimum of $500,000 apiece plus a $41,500 "administrative fee" to U.S. bank accounts. These administrative fees are separate from the investment capital that the EB-5 program requires to be deployed into a job-creating enterprise. More than $11 million in administrative fees were collected with the claim that they were fully refundable to investors if their visa applications are rejected. Sethi and his companies have instead been spending those funds.
The SEC alleges that Sethi submitted false claims about the project to USCIS. Among the phony documentation that he provided to the agency in seeking preliminary approval for the project under the EB-5 program were a comfort letter from Hyatt Hotels and a backup financing letter from the Qatar Investment Authority.
The SEC’s complaint alleges that Sethi and his companies made a number of misrepresentations about the project to dupe investors. Offering materials stated that investors’ funds would help build "a convention center and hotel complex, including convention and meeting space, five upscale hotels, and amenities including restaurants, lounges, bars, and entertainment facilities." Sethi and his companies prominently featured in their marketing materials the purported participation of three major hotel chains in the project: Hyatt, Intercontinental Hotel Group, and Starwood Hotels. However, none of these hotel chains have executed franchise agreements to include a brand hotel in this project as represented to investors in the offering materials. Two of the chains actually terminated prior deals with other Sethi-related entities more than two years before these offering materials were circulated to investors.
The SEC further alleges that the offering materials falsely stated that construction would begin in summer 2012 and occupancy of the first tower would occur in early spring 2014. A search of the Chicago Building Permits database for the project address shows that the only recent permits are for a tent for a purported groundbreaking ceremony held in November 2012, a demolition permit, construction of a fence, and a minor electrical wiring permit.
According to the SEC’s complaint, the 29-year-old Sethi misrepresented to investors in offering materials that he has "over fifteen years of experience in real estate development and management, specifically in the lodging area." Offering materials also misleadingly state that the project’s developer Upgrowth LLC has "more than 35 years of experience." Illinois corporate records show that Upgrowth was just recently organized in 2010.
The SEC’s complaint alleges that Sethi, ACCC, and IRCTC violated Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5. In addition to the temporary restraining order and asset freeze granted by the court, the SEC’s complaint seeks permanent injunctions and other monetary relief.
The SEC’s investigation, which is continuing, has been conducted by Mika M. Donlon and Adam J. Eisner under the supervision of C. Joshua Felker. Patrick M. Bryan will lead the litigation. The SEC acknowledges the substantial assistance of the USCIS.
Washington, D.C., Feb. 8, 2013 — The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced charges and an asset freeze against an individual living in Illinois and two companies behind an investment scheme defrauding foreign investors seeking profitable returns and a legal path to U.S. residency through a federal visa program.
The SEC alleges that Anshoo R. Sethi created A Chicago Convention Center (ACCC) and Intercontinental Regional Center Trust of Chicago (IRCTC) and fraudulently sold more than $145 million in securities and collected $11 million in administrative fees from more than 250 investors primarily from China. Sethi and his companies duped investors into believing that by purchasing interests in ACCC, they would be financing construction of the "World’s First Zero Carbon Emission Platinum LEED certified" hotel and conference center near Chicago’s O’Hare Airport. Investors were misled to believe their investments were simultaneously enhancing their prospects for U.S. citizenship through the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Pilot Program, which provides foreign investors an avenue to U.S. residency by investing in domestic projects that will create or preserve a minimum number of jobs for U.S. workers.
The SEC alleges that Sethi and his companies falsely boasted to investors that they had acquired all the necessary building permits and that several major hotel chains had signed onto the project. They also provided falsified documents to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) — the federal agency that administers the EB-5 program — in an attempt to secure the agency’s preliminary approval of the project and investors’ provisional visas. Meanwhile, Sethi and his companies have spent more than 90 percent of the administrative fees collected from investors despite their promise to return this money to investors if their visa applications are denied. More than $2.5 million of these funds were directed to Sethi’s personal bank account in Hong Kong.
Swift coordination between the SEC and USCIS has brought the scheme to a halt in its application stage at USCIS. The SEC filed its complaint under seal earlier this week and obtained an emergency court order to protect the remaining $145 million in investor assets that were at risk of being similarly misappropriated by Sethi and his companies. The case was unsealed this morning.
"Sethi orchestrated an elaborate scheme and exploited these investors’ dream of earning legal U.S. residence along with a positive return on their investment in a project that was not nearly the done deal that he portrayed," said Stephen L. Cohen, Associate Director in the SEC’s Division of Enforcement. "The good news is that working closely with USCIS, we intervened early and stopped him from getting very far, and the asset freeze preserves nearly all of the money invested."
According to the SEC’s complaint filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, the EB-5 program enables foreign investors to possibly qualify for a green card if they invest $1 million (or $500,000 in a "Targeted Employment Area" with a high unemployment rate) in a project that creates or preserves at least 10 jobs for U.S. workers, excluding the investor and his or her immediate family. Sethi and his companies used the lure of a pathway to U.S. citizenship to convince investors to wire a minimum of $500,000 apiece plus a $41,500 "administrative fee" to U.S. bank accounts. These administrative fees are separate from the investment capital that the EB-5 program requires to be deployed into a job-creating enterprise. More than $11 million in administrative fees were collected with the claim that they were fully refundable to investors if their visa applications are rejected. Sethi and his companies have instead been spending those funds.
The SEC alleges that Sethi submitted false claims about the project to USCIS. Among the phony documentation that he provided to the agency in seeking preliminary approval for the project under the EB-5 program were a comfort letter from Hyatt Hotels and a backup financing letter from the Qatar Investment Authority.
The SEC’s complaint alleges that Sethi and his companies made a number of misrepresentations about the project to dupe investors. Offering materials stated that investors’ funds would help build "a convention center and hotel complex, including convention and meeting space, five upscale hotels, and amenities including restaurants, lounges, bars, and entertainment facilities." Sethi and his companies prominently featured in their marketing materials the purported participation of three major hotel chains in the project: Hyatt, Intercontinental Hotel Group, and Starwood Hotels. However, none of these hotel chains have executed franchise agreements to include a brand hotel in this project as represented to investors in the offering materials. Two of the chains actually terminated prior deals with other Sethi-related entities more than two years before these offering materials were circulated to investors.
The SEC further alleges that the offering materials falsely stated that construction would begin in summer 2012 and occupancy of the first tower would occur in early spring 2014. A search of the Chicago Building Permits database for the project address shows that the only recent permits are for a tent for a purported groundbreaking ceremony held in November 2012, a demolition permit, construction of a fence, and a minor electrical wiring permit.
According to the SEC’s complaint, the 29-year-old Sethi misrepresented to investors in offering materials that he has "over fifteen years of experience in real estate development and management, specifically in the lodging area." Offering materials also misleadingly state that the project’s developer Upgrowth LLC has "more than 35 years of experience." Illinois corporate records show that Upgrowth was just recently organized in 2010.
The SEC’s complaint alleges that Sethi, ACCC, and IRCTC violated Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5. In addition to the temporary restraining order and asset freeze granted by the court, the SEC’s complaint seeks permanent injunctions and other monetary relief.
The SEC’s investigation, which is continuing, has been conducted by Mika M. Donlon and Adam J. Eisner under the supervision of C. Joshua Felker. Patrick M. Bryan will lead the litigation. The SEC acknowledges the substantial assistance of the USCIS.
U.S. NAVY ADMIRAL LOCKLEAR SAYS PACIFIC TERRITORIAL DISPUTES COULD END IN CONFLICT
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| Equestrian statue of the famous samurai Kusunoki Masashige (1294-1336) outside of the Imperial Palace in Tokyo. Credit: CIA World Factbook. |
Locklear Warns of Territorial Disputes Escalating to Conflict
By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Feb. 9, 2013 - Amid reports of an incident between China and Japan near the Senkaku Islands, the top U.S. commander in the Asia-Pacific reiterated the need to resolve territorial disputes peacefully and to develop a code of conduct to support the process.
Navy Adm. Samuel J. Locklear III, commander of U.S. Pacific Command, told the U.S. Indonesia Society in Jakarta, Indonesia, yesterday that territorial disputes have occurred throughout history and will undoubtedly continue into the future.
But the admiral warned during a media roundtable about the stress these disputes inflict on the security environment – and the potential they pose for conflict if not resolved.
Nations of the world need to come together to settle their differences over parts of the South China Sea and other contested areas diplomatically so they don't escalate, he said.
Military conflict "would have global impacts that we should not even contemplate," he warned. "We should not even allow it to enter into our dialogue ... and not allow it to happen."
The United States does not take sides in border disputes, he emphasized, but will continue to do everything in its power to support steps being taken by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and others to promote peaceful resolution.
Locklear didn't get into specifics when asked about reports that a Chinese navy warship targeted a Japanese warship with its weapons radar near the Senkaku Islands last month. He said, however, that it rings a warning bell about how quickly territorial differences can turn dangerous.
"There must be real care in ensuring that the governments involved and leadership of those governments understand the potential for miscalculation if those systems are used incorrectly," he said.
The U.S. perspective to both Japan and China, he said, is that "we need to be very, very careful in ensuring we don't see escalation that could lead to miscalculation that could lead to unintended consequences."
Locklear reiterated his call for a code of conduct that provides a framework for resolving these differences. He expressed hope that ASEAN and nations in the region including China will "feel a sense of urgency" and reinvigorate the stalled discussions toward reaching one.
"The question is, can we have a system of rules that allows us to work together with this with diplomacy rather than military power?" he said
Establishing this code "will give diplomacy breathing room and give diplomacy time to work, because it will take some time," he said.
SECRETARY OF EDUCATION DUNCAN RECOGNIZES SCHOOL COUNSELORS
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION February 8, 2013
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan issued the following statement today, recognizing National School Counseling Week, Feb. 4-8, 2013.
Every day, caring and dedicated professionals across this country engage in the often unrecognized work of school counseling. This week in particular, I want to recognize these trained educators, who help millions of young people sidestep the roadblocks of life and circumstance to become successful students and, ultimately, reach their full potential.
The role of school counselors is growing increasingly demanding and it continues to change. Not only are counselors charged with finding innovative and effective ways to provide students with academic and career guidance, counselors also are called upon to help support students’ social and emotional wellbeing, which is essential for them to thrive. Particularly in light of recent traumatic events in schools, including the tragedy in Newtown, Connecticut, this role is more important than ever to create and maintain a healthy school climate and ensure that students feel safe and supported as they learn and grow.
Increasingly, counselors are working in new ways – embracing the importance of data on graduation rates, FAFSA completion, and college enrollment rates to better prepare students to access and persist in higher education. It is this type of work that will help our nation to reach the President’s goal of leading the world in college graduates by 2020.
Last week, I met with counselors who have been honored as finalists in the School Counselor of the Year Award program. These finalists remind us of the extraordinary work that is being led by counselors across the country to address the needs of the whole child.
By collaborating with students, staff, parents and the community, counselors are finding better ways to support children and help their families to access vital academic, mental health and social services. For these efforts, we salute them.
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