News Story
ATF official Tom Brandon: No New Stings Underway After Botched Operations
By John Diedrich and Raquel Rutledge Milwaukee Journal Sentinel WASHINGTON — After running nearly 40 undercover storefront stings in the last five years, the ATF’s deputy director says no such operations are now underway and that improvements in oversight have been made in the wake of botched operations nationwide. Deputy Director Thomas E. Brandon testified…
Update: Attorney General Eric Holder is Fine and Home From the Hospital
Update: Thursday, 4:30 p.m. — Attorney Gen. Eric Holder was released from the hospital this afternoon. The Justice Department issued a statement: “The Attorney General has been discharged from MedStar Washington Hospital Center. He was taken there earlier today as a precaution, after experiencing lightheadedness and shortness of breath during a senior staff meeting at…
Former Inspector General for HUD is Indicted in Alleged Mortgage Fraud Scheme
By Allan Lengel ticklethewire.com A former head of the Office of Inspector General’s Atlanta office faces charges of making false statements to a bank to obtain a mortgage loan and conspiring to obstruct an investigation, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Atlanta said Thursday. Herschell Harvell, Jr., 53, made his initial appearance in federal court in…
Florida State Attorney to Reveal Results of Investigation of FBI Shooting of Friend of Boston Marathon Bomber
Steve Neavling ticklethewire.com A state investigation into the mysterious fatal shooting of a friend of Boston Marathon bomber Tamerian Tsaranev during an FBI interview is expected to be released next month. The Boston Herald reports that Florida state Attorney Jeffrey Ashton anticipates releasing the report by the end of March. The Florida investigation is one…
Top Criminal Prosecutor at Justice Department Is Leaving Following High-Profile Cases
Steve Neavling ticklethewire.com Mythili Raman, the Justice Department’s top criminal attorney, is leaving the agency next month following high-profile cases of corporate misdeeds, Reuters reports. Raman is a 17-year veteran of the department and once acted as chief after her predecessor, Lanny Breuer, stepped down last year. Raman said she’s not sure what’s next in…
Congressional Panel to Probe Discovery That FBI Was in Direct Contact with Osama bin Laden in 1990s
Steve Neavling ticklethewire.com A special congressional panel will investigate revelations this week that the FBI was in direct contact with Osama bin Laden in the early 1990s, the Washington Times reports. The agency’s close contact with bin Laden was never included in the official investigations of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, but the Washington Times…
Homeland Security Is Shedding Air Marshal Jobs Because of Deep Budget Cuts
Steve Neavling ticklethewire.com Budget cuts have forced Homeland Security to reduce the number of Federal Air Marshals whose job is to protect aircrafts from terrorists, CNN reports, citing internal emails. The department declined to say how many marshals the department has lost in the past three years. Critics blasted the department for its secrecy surrounding…
ATF Agents Lost Track of Dozens of Their Own Guns, Reports Show
By John Diedrich and Raquel Rutledge Milwaukee Journal Sentinel ATF agents have lost track of dozens of government-issued guns, after stashing them under the front seats in their cars, in glove compartments or simply leaving them on top of their vehicles and driving away, according to internal reports from the past five years obtained…