After years of allowing corporations to withhold vital safety information, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) screamed “stop” on Thursday, AOL News reported. In the Federal Register, the agency said it will no longer permit the obstruction of safety evaluations by allowing firms to hide behind age-old claims of business secrecy. (See item 9)
According to The Associated Press, federal investigators alleged that a Canadian national who the U.S. government said swindled $70 million from 40,000 investors on six continents carried out the same kind of Ponzi scheme that the one-time bank robber mocked on his Web site. The man warned clients of his online business, “Pathway to Prosperity,” to stay away from high-yield investment programs that often boast of unrealistic returns for little or no risk. Yet a federal criminal complaint alleges that he promised “outlandish” return rates — investigators said anywhere from 546 percent to 17,000 percent — with no explanation of his methodology or his identity. (See item 19)
