Posted on 08/05/2007 9:09:18 AM PDT by george76
Even though federal authorities say Bert Fingerhut cheated bank investors out of millions of dollars, many in the Aspen community have shown support for him.
Pitkin County Sheriff Bob Braudis is among them.
Braudis, who had never met Fingerhut until recently, wrote a letter to the federal judge who sentenced Fingerhut to two years in federal prison Friday. Braudis letter spoke highly of Fingerhut. It also surprised federal authorities.
That struck us that a sheriff would write a letter supporting a criminal, said Assistant U. S. Attorney Karl Buch. And he wrote it on his professional letterhead.
Fingerhut, 63, also must pay a $75,000 fine and serve four months in home confinement after his prison sentence, attorneys on both sides said.
Court documents show he also agreed to forfeit $11 million in illegal profits, in conjunction to a civil case by the federal government.
Fingerhut, who resigned from the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance earlier this year ...
(Excerpt) Read more at aspentimes.com ...
" Fingerhut, who faced five years in prison, won leniency by helping prosecutors unravel what they said was the largest mutual bank conversion scheme ever uncovered...
U.S. v. Fingerhut, 07-cr-214, U.S. District Court, District of New Jersey (Newark). The SEC case is SEC v. Fingerhut, 07-cv-2294, U.S. District Court, District of New Jersey (Newark). "
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” Fingerhut has been active in environmental causes, serving on the boards of the Wilderness Society, the Alaska Conservation Foundation, the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance and the National Outdoor Leadership School. “
Reply #2.
bttt
Thanks for the ping.
I don’t know a thing about this but it looks like this Fingerhut is a very well liked con man. That would put him at the very top of the country’s grifters.
The other three defendants were nominees for Bert Fingerhut who knowingly played active roles in implementing the scheme and profited from their efforts: Robert Danetz, a childhood friend of Bert Fingerhut; Bruce Fingerhut, Bert Fingerhut’s nephew; and Stephen Danetz, Robert Danetz’s brother.
The complaint alleges that the defendants made numerous misrepresentations in stock subscription agreements and stock order forms to carry out their fraudulent scheme. The complaint also alleges that Robert Danetz and Bruce Fingerhut acted as undisclosed nominees and used phony identification cards and other documents in order to deceive the banks.
All four defendants have agreed to settle the Commission’s charges.
http://sec.gov/litigation/litreleases/2007/lr20118.htm
Isn’t Fingerhut a donor to many of the same anti America phoney non profits as George $oreA$$ is.
He and his friends have raised tons of cash to close the public lands and public roads thru their ‘wilderness’ and ‘save the earth’ schemes.
He was the chairman of the Wilderness Society...
To expand his scheme, Fingerhut obtained lines of credit in 1999 from the Central Bank of Aspen, later acquired by U.S. Bancorp, prosecutors alleged.
Regulations require mutual banks to offer shares to depositors, limit the amount of stock they can buy and block the transfer of shares to others.
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/other_business/article/0,2777,DRMN_23916_5540596,00.html
” Fingerhut a donor to many of the same anti America phoney non profits as George $oreA$$ is.”
Yes : This is how he raised the money :
“Fingerhut used his Wall Street acumen to concoct a cunning scheme,” U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Christie said in a prepared statement. “He made millions by robbing everyday depositors of an opportunity to which they were entitled and deserved.”
http://www.aspendailynews.com/print_19677
Sounds like a pretty light sentence for his actions but at least the judge didn’t let him off with probation.
Too bad they didn’t nail some of his friends who helped him with the schemes.
The feds seem to have a hard time getting past the local sheriff.
60 Minutes has run a featured story of their ‘good work’ of failing to enforce federal and state laws that the sheriff does not agree with. It is called “community policing.”
This apparently provides cover for drug dealers, illegals...
Hell, What's not to like?
Just your friendly elitist tree hugging thief.
He looks guilty.
Corrupt democrat politicians in Aspen. Who’d-a-thunk it?
TC
Corrupt democrat politicians in Aspen. Who’d-a-thunk it?
TC
It's called "cover" - i.e. something to make one look respectable.
I guess honesty and character manifests itself in every human activity...
Not surprised.
Just saying...
A former board member of the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance and Wall Street executive will be sentenced Friday for spearheading what federal officials say was a decadelong securities scheme they deemed one of the worst of its kind.
http://www.sltrib.com/ci_6514130?source=rss
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