Ever since the 9/11 attacks, the FBI has been consumed by cases that have to do with terrorism. However, the current economic crisis has forced them to switch gears and start to focus on white collar criminals (aka individuals who take advantage of the economic situation and commit fraud). The FBI has started investigating more than 200 mortgage-fraud cases and 36 corporate-fraud cases. "The increasing mortgage, corporate fraud, and institution failure case inventory is straining the FBI's limited white collar crime resources," says FBI director John Pistole (according to US News article: http://www.usnews.com/articles/news/2009/04/01/amid-recession-fbi-makes-new-push-on-financial-crimes.html). Congress has been discussing the possibility of increasing the FBI's budget so that it can better address the current problems.
So what exactly is the FBI doing to curb fraud? For one, it is sending its agents into firms and is telling its accountants to track "illicit securities deals." There is apparently some sort of difficulties between the agents and the FBI leaders, but nonetheless, they are making progress. The rise of white collar criminals has also come at a good time for the FBI. The FBI has been getting fewer and fewer terrorism cases since 2001 and has not really been taking many of them to trial. As a result, the FBI can commit more energy and time into combating financial fraud, and less of it to combat terrorism.
"They are incredibly labor-intensive cases, especially if the criminals were educated the country's best business schools," says FBI director. Pistole is right, considering that cases take years just to get enough research and background information; the magnitude of paperwork is huge.
I feel that the FBI is finally doing something productive in terms of our public safety. Terrorism isn't really that big of an issue anymore, so it's about time that we started refocusing our efforts on more important issues. Financial fraud is an especially pertinent topic considering our current situation. I finally approve of what the FBI is doing.
1 comment:
I think this is becoming a really important job nowadays. It may not be the kind of thing people thought of when the applied for a job working for the FBI, no great adventures, just chasing down those worthy of the most foul language you can come up with. How is America supposed to fight wars in the middle east when american's themselves are bound and determined to ruin the country from the inside. We have no true sense of nationalism or brotherhood, or care for our fellow americans. No one gives a crap about attempting to pull through together, the only way we can get out of this blackhole, most are selfishly, and perhaps rightly, preoccupied with self profit, making sure they survive even at the cost of those who don't deserve it. Thankfully someone recognized we need to take down those who are part of the cause of our economic crises. Now if only politics weren't preventing the government from seeing what it really has to do...
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