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Former high-powered lobbyist Jack Abramoff pleaded guilty Tuesday to conspiracy, fraud and tax evasion charges, agreeing to cooperate in a federal corruption probe in Washington.

Abramoff, 46, admitted that he did not disclose receiving kickbacks on payments from Native American tribes to a partner's public relations firm. He also acknowledged that some of his money did not go to charities, as he had reported, but paid for a golf trip to Scotland.

In two lawsuits, politically connected U.S. telecom companies have been accused of kickbacks to Former President Aristide and his associates.

A former top executive of Qwest Communications International Inc on Wednesday pleaded guilty to wire fraud, avoiding a five-week trial that had been set to start on Tuesday.

Chronology of accounting practices and federal investigations of
Qwest Communications International Inc.:

2001:

--June 20: Morgan Stanley downgrades Qwest stock after analyst questions accounting practices. Qwest Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Joseph Nacchio later disputes the claim.

2002:

--Feb. 11: Qwest cooperates with government subpoena concerning its swap of fiber-optic network capacity with Global Crossing Ltd.

--April 4: Qwest says SEC has begun formal inquiry into its accounting practices.

Battle lines are being drawn up as delegates gather for the summit. For some governments, it is an opportunity to promote the role of business in sustainable development. But many campaigners have the opposite goal: to stem the tide of corporate influence over social and environmental policy.

The former chief accounting officer of Enron pleaded guilty today to a single felony charge of securities fraud and agreed to cooperate with federal prosecutors, giving a significant lift to the government's case against the two leading figures in the scandal over Enron's collapse.

German financial giant Deutsche Bank has agreed to a $270 million settlement of claims that it participated in a complex securities fraud orchestrated by a fugitive Saudi arms merchant that bankrupted Minneapolis-based securities firm Stockwalk Group four years ago.

A scandal has rocked the $64 billion global diamond business and tarnished the credibility of one the industry's biggest players,according to a news report Tuesday.

Two groups of investors are suing Diebold Inc., claiming that misleading comments about the company's electronic voting machine business artificially inflated share prices.

Trans-national corporations perpetrating human rights and environmental abuses will answer for their actions - wherever they are. Politicians that ignore or enable these abuses will be exposed.

Soon heading to trial, the former Enron CEO implores -- before a wealthy crowd -- company employees to "stand up" for him.

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