Political corruption is an insidious thing, a lot like swine flu or in this case flu among the swine.
For far too long, the political system in LA has been morally corrupt: Political money buys access, access begets favors. And after a while, the ethical line becomes so blurred that favors are sold outright and political money becomes expected. It's what pay-to-play is all about.
The tentacles of the New York public employee pension fund scandal is reaching deeper into the LA political scene according to the Wall Street Journal which reports today that Julio Ramirez, a politically-connected operative formerly with Wetherly Capital, has "pleaded guilty to securities fraud and is cooperating with the investigation, according to people familiar with the matter."
Ramirez, 48, of La Canada-Flintridge, pleaded guilty to a criminal misdemeanor charge and is likely to face a civil complaint from the Securities and Exchange Commission.
The charges stem from a series of fraudulent transactions with Hank Morris, central figure in the New York probe and long-time partner of top LA political consultant Bill Carrick, and others.
They were part of a "national network of actors who often acted in concert across the country" to help firms secure investments from pension funds and allow agents to collect lucrative fees, according to the Journal.
"Both men acted as middlemen, or placement agents, who received payments from private-equity and hedge-fund firms for helping secure contracts to manage pension-fund money. At the heart of the case is concern investment decisions regarding retirees' money were guided by improper influence peddling."
The allegedly fraudulent transactions involved the Los Angeles-based placement agent firm, Wetherly Capital Group, where Ramirez was a top manager, and Dallas-based Aldus Equity Partners.
Wetherly has represented equity firms that got funds from the LA Fire and Police Pension Fund and Aldus advised the the fund's board. Two directors of the fund -- Sean Harrigan and Elliot Broidy -- resigned after the SEC sought details of their personal financial dealings.
Ramirez and his wife, political fund-raiser Annette Castro, have given generously to local political campaigns over the years as has Wetherly.
A Wetherly spokesman told the Journal that in 2003, Ramirez recommended working with Morris to get pension business.
Wetherly, headed by Daniel Weinstein, paid Ramirez or his company Ramirez Partners Inc., then Mr. Ramirez paid Mr. Morris. "Ramirez informed us that this was how Morris wanted to be paid for his services," the Wetherly spokesman said.
New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo alleges in the indictment that $313,750 in payments to Morris were "proceeds of criminal conduct" involved in a money laundering and kickback scheme.
The Journal said Wetherly "has come within the scope of the investigation." The company denies wrongdoing and it is cooperating in the investigation.
In 2004, Ramirez reportedly told Saul Meyer, founder of Aldus Equity, that his firm also should hire Morris to get hired by the New York pension fund. Meyer is charged with security fraud in the case.
Ramirez worked for the Park Hill Group as a placement agent from 2005 until shortly after the scandal erupted. A spokesman for the private-equity firm Blackstone Group, which own Park Hill Group, said its own investigation found that Ramirez did not violate "our high standards of conduct or evaded our rigorous controls."
Clearly, this is just the tip of a scandal that could touch many others.
What's not clear is whether Attorney General Jerry Brown will vigorously go after a pay-to-play scandal that reaches deep into the Democratic Party at a time when he's seeking the party's nomination for governor or whether District Attorney Steve Cooley will muster the energy and skill to conduct a thorough investigation.
For far too long, the political system in LA has been morally corrupt: Political money buys access, access begets favors. And after a while, the ethical line becomes so blurred that favors are sold outright and political money becomes expected. It's what pay-to-play is all about.
The tentacles of the New York public employee pension fund scandal is reaching deeper into the LA political scene according to the Wall Street Journal which reports today that Julio Ramirez, a politically-connected operative formerly with Wetherly Capital, has "pleaded guilty to securities fraud and is cooperating with the investigation, according to people familiar with the matter."
Ramirez, 48, of La Canada-Flintridge, pleaded guilty to a criminal misdemeanor charge and is likely to face a civil complaint from the Securities and Exchange Commission.
The charges stem from a series of fraudulent transactions with Hank Morris, central figure in the New York probe and long-time partner of top LA political consultant Bill Carrick, and others.
They were part of a "national network of actors who often acted in concert across the country" to help firms secure investments from pension funds and allow agents to collect lucrative fees, according to the Journal.
"Both men acted as middlemen, or placement agents, who received payments from private-equity and hedge-fund firms for helping secure contracts to manage pension-fund money. At the heart of the case is concern investment decisions regarding retirees' money were guided by improper influence peddling."
The allegedly fraudulent transactions involved the Los Angeles-based placement agent firm, Wetherly Capital Group, where Ramirez was a top manager, and Dallas-based Aldus Equity Partners.
Wetherly has represented equity firms that got funds from the LA Fire and Police Pension Fund and Aldus advised the the fund's board. Two directors of the fund -- Sean Harrigan and Elliot Broidy -- resigned after the SEC sought details of their personal financial dealings.
Ramirez and his wife, political fund-raiser Annette Castro, have given generously to local political campaigns over the years as has Wetherly.
A Wetherly spokesman told the Journal that in 2003, Ramirez recommended working with Morris to get pension business.
Wetherly, headed by Daniel Weinstein, paid Ramirez or his company Ramirez Partners Inc., then Mr. Ramirez paid Mr. Morris. "Ramirez informed us that this was how Morris wanted to be paid for his services," the Wetherly spokesman said.
New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo alleges in the indictment that $313,750 in payments to Morris were "proceeds of criminal conduct" involved in a money laundering and kickback scheme.
The Journal said Wetherly "has come within the scope of the investigation." The company denies wrongdoing and it is cooperating in the investigation.
In 2004, Ramirez reportedly told Saul Meyer, founder of Aldus Equity, that his firm also should hire Morris to get hired by the New York pension fund. Meyer is charged with security fraud in the case.
Ramirez worked for the Park Hill Group as a placement agent from 2005 until shortly after the scandal erupted. A spokesman for the private-equity firm Blackstone Group, which own Park Hill Group, said its own investigation found that Ramirez did not violate "our high standards of conduct or evaded our rigorous controls."
Clearly, this is just the tip of a scandal that could touch many others.
What's not clear is whether Attorney General Jerry Brown will vigorously go after a pay-to-play scandal that reaches deep into the Democratic Party at a time when he's seeking the party's nomination for governor or whether District Attorney Steve Cooley will muster the energy and skill to conduct a thorough investigation.
Ron Kaye is the former editor of the Los Angeles Daily News where he spent 23 years helping to make the newspaper the voice of the San Fernando Valley and fighting for a city government that serves the people and not special interests.
Twice in recent years, Los Angeles Magazine listed Kaye among the city’s most influential people, specifically in the area of politics. Kaye has been variously described in the media as the “accidental anarchist,” “the Patrick Henry of the San Fernando Valley” and a “passionate populist.” He is now committed to
carrying on his crusade for a greater Los Angeles as an ordinary citizen. Previously, Ron worked at the Los Angeles Herald Examiner,
Associated Press, Cleveland Plain Dealer and The Australian as well as papers
in Fairbanks, Alaska and Yakima, Wash. He also wrote for Newsweek magazine, The Guardian in London and the National Enquirer.
What is going on is very real. We are trying to find a government that represents our
interests, not only their own and their friends and cohorts. We must convince them that we are not going away, and that we are very much interested and disappointed and involved now in having CHANGE. We have all heard that in the last national converntion. But our change is not to change our political system, it is to make it work for us, the citizens whoi support it with our hard-earned money through ever-increasing taxation.
Surely the pols realize that they are ruining our city. If it is not because they do not know what they are doing, then, to me, it means that they really do not care. If you can attend the meetings today at one o'clock and on Friday at 9 am, or one or the other, please do make the effort. It matters. th
My understanding is that this is just a small part of all of the scams of Julio Ramirez. An investigation should be initiated on his involvement of state commissions for previous Speakers. I'm told he sold commission appointments and appointed friends so that he could represent businesses that had issues before such commissions. Talk about unethical and sleazy.