Stoneridge and the Banks

"Last spring, Wachovia bank was accused in a lawsuit of allowing fraudulent telemarkers to use the bank's accounts to steal millions of dollars from unsuspecting victims. When asked about the suit, bank executives said they had been unaware of the thefts. But newly relased documents from that lawsuit now show that Wachovia had long known about allegations of fraud and that the bank, in fact, solicited business from companies it knew had been accused of telemarketing crimes. ... Documents also show that Wachovia was alerted by other banks and federal agencies about ongoing deceptions, but it continued to provide banking services to multiple companies that helped steal as much as $400 million from unsuspecting victims. ... In the last three years, government agencies have sued several companies accused of routing telemarketing thefts through at least nine banks, including Wachovia, the largest company named in those lawsuits. .. However, Wachovia and most other banks accussed of involvement in similar frauds have never been publicly fined or prosecuted by federal regulators for aiding telemarketing criminals. So victims have turned to private lawsuits. ...Last June, ... Edward J. Markey, Democrat of Massachusetts ... asked five regulatory agencies to answer questions regarding the unsigned checking system that fraud artists use. ... Many of the agencies responded by saying they lacked jurisdiction. ... 'These types of crimes only are possible because banks tolerate them,' said the [US] Attorney in Philidelphia, Patrick L. Meehan, who prosecuted a payment processor accused of using Wachovia accounts to steal more than $100 million", my emphasis, http://www.nytimes.com/, 2 February 2008.

The (In)Justice Department is amazing. Banks which aid and abet felonies are never accused of anything. Just peasants who defraud banks of insignificant amounts. Consider, "the agencies responded by saying they lacked jurisdiction". Really? Why did the Bush Aministration push Stoneridge?