TARP FRAUD

The Los Angeles Times is reporting that US watchdogs, looking closely at the $750-billion financial bailout program, have now opened 20 criminal probes into possible securities fraud, tax violations, insider trading and other crimes. The paper quotes Neil Barofsky, the special inspector general overseeing the bailout program, saying, "The cases represent only the first wave of investigations, and the total fraud could ultimately reach into the tens of billions of dollars."