Whistleblower News From The Inside — February 29, 2016

By the C|C Whistleblower Lawyer Team

Lockheed will pay $5 million to resolve charges it mishandled hazardous waste at Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant– Whistleblower suits alleged that Lockheed improperly handled and stored waste at the uranium enrichment facility.  $1 million of the settlement represents civil penalties for violations of Resource Conservation and Recovery Act; the other $4 million is the False Claims Act settlement. USAO – WDKY

NY AG announces settlement in municipal bonds derivatives case – AG Schneiderman announced a $56 million settlement with Natixis and Societe Generale for fraudulent and anticompetitive conduct in municipal bond derivative transactions. The fraudulent practices  harmed municipalities, counties, government agencies, school districts and nonprofits. The investigation into the derivatives market began in 2008; $400 million has been recovered. NY AG

GE Capital subpoenaed in subprime probe – The Justice Dept.’s investigation of subprime mortgages continues, with GE disclosing that both its lending unit and a former subsidiary have received subpoenas.  WSJ

Senators Ernst and Peters join Whistleblower Protection Caucus – The caucus, launched last year by Sen. Chuck Grassley, is a bipartisan effort to raise awareness of the important role of whistleblowers in holding government and businesses accountable.   KIOW

Florida bank penalized for role in Ponzi scheme – Gibralter Private Bank and Trust failed to monitor and detect suspicious activity despite red flags, allowing attorney Scott Rothstein to continue to run a $1.2 billion Ponzi scheme.  WSJ

UBS investigated for fraud and money laundering in Belgium – The Swiss bank is suspected of engaging in these activities in an effort to help wealthy clients avoid taxes. NYT