Three pages – write a one-page summary for each of article, see the Instructions and other documents.

Assignment: 3 Source Annotations

Annotation 1

Write a one-page summary of a source you selected for your final project. Remember that you will be using this information with the interview you completed earlier in the semester. Preserve the following format for the notes you are submitting. Use excellent grammar.

Title:

Author: 

Summary:

Evaluation of usefulness with your preexisting interview:

Quotes:

Annotation 2

Write a one-page summary of a source you selected for your final project. Remember that you will be using this information with the interview you completed earlier in the semester. Preserve the following format for the notes you are submitting. Use excellent grammar.
Title:
Author: 
Summary:
Evaluation of usefulness with your preexisting interview:
Quotes:

Annotation 3

Write a one-page summary of a source you selected for your final project. Remember that you will be using this information with the interview you completed earlier in the semester. Preserve the following format for the notes you are submitting. Use excellent grammar.
Title:
Author: 
Summary:
Evaluation of usefulness with your preexisting interview:
Quotes:

1-Railway bribery gate: Bribe money was layered via different companies to show as biz deals (IANS Special)

New Delhi, Dec 12 (IANS) The accused named in the 2013 railway bribery for post scam was layering funds through multiple companies and persons to show them as normal business transactions, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has found in its investigation.

IANS has viewed the chargesheet filed by the ED in the 2013 bribe for posting case.

The ED said, “The statements of the witnesses recorded clearly established the intents of the accused persons and their involvement in the schedule offences and generation of proceeds of crime by way of layering and integration of funds through a number of entities and persons.”

The ED had filed a chargesheet in the railway bribery case in October this year against IRSSE officer Mahesh Kumar, senior Congress leader and former Railway Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal’s nephew Vijay Singla, N. Manjunath, Sandeep Goyal, Ajay Garg, Sandhir, Sushil Daga, C.V. Venugopal, M.V. Murali Krishna and Venketeshwara Rail Nirman Pvt Ltd under sections of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

The ED has also demanded punishment for those named in the chargesheet and confiscation of their assets. The ED case is based on the FIR and chargesheet filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) against Mahesh Kumar, Singla, Goyal and seven other accused persons.

The ED said that Mahesh Kumar and Goyal in their statements have stated that the purpose of their meeting at Hotel Taj in Mumbai and Hotel Lalit in Delhi was to discuss a marriage proposal. 

“However, as per the CBI chargesheet, the outcome of the meeting at Hotel Taj was shared by Goyal with Garg. And Garg in his statement to the ED stated that Goyal had informed him that Mahesh Kumar was trying to become Member (Electrical) in railway board and Goyal was in touch with Manjunath who wanted to get Mahesh Kumar posted as Member (Electrical),” the ED claimed.

“There remains no doubt that that the meetings at Hotel Taj and Hotel Lalit were not only to discuss a marriage proposal, but also for planning of appointment of Mahesh Kumar as Member (Electrical) and the bribes amount to be paid,” the ED claimed.

It further said that Manjunath, Venugopal and Krishna in their statements have claimed that their contribution amounts were business transactions. “However, the persons through which the funds were routed and arranged at Delhi in cash have confirmed in their statements that these payments were arranged on the request of the accused persons. However, these payments were adjusted by them in their books of accounts,” it alleged.

The ED further alleged that the bankig transactions made by the accused persons were made to mobilise the funds through “layering” by using a number of accounts of entities and persons and finally integrated the funds in the form of “cash” at Delhi.

“Statements of witnesses clearly establishes the modus-operandi of the accused and purpose of transactions through a number of entities. Later on, the funds layered were shown by these persons as business transactions but the same were proceeds of crime,” it added.

The ED also said that the money was layered in as many as nine companies before being handed to the people who then took it to Chandigarh.

The statements were recorded by the ED in 2017 and 2019. 

The CBI had caught Singla red-handed while accepting a bribe of Rs 89.68 lakh for the favourable posting of Mahesh Kumar. The ED in July this year had questioned Bansal for several hours in Chandigarh in connection with the case.

Bansal had to step down from the post amid the accusations.

In May last year, the ED had attached the Rs 89 lakh amount which the CBI seized from the office of Bansal’s nephew Singla in 2013 in the corruption case related to appointments at top positions in the railways, when the Congress leader was the Union Railway Minister in the United Progressive Alliance-2 regime.

Singla demanded Rs 10 crore through Sandeep Goyal from N. Manjunath to get Mahesh Kumar posted as Member (Electrical), the ED had said, quoting the CBI probe. (Anand Singh can be contacted at Anand.s@ians.in)

–IANS

aks/arm

Word count: 683

Copyright Indo Asian News Service (IANS) Dec 12, 2020

2- Brazil Investigating Alleged Graft in Construction of World Cup Stadium; Probe targets construction companies that allegedly paid bribes to win the contract to build a stadium in Brasília

SÃO PAULO–Brazilian authorities launched a new investigation, this time targeting construction companies that allegedly paid bribes to win the contract to build a stadium in Brasília where World Cup matches were played in 2014.

Police executed search and arrest warrants Tuesday morning, aimed at people allegedly involved in the scam. The probe is under seal, so the names of those investigated weren’t revealed by police.

Local news media reported that two former governors of the Federal District, where Brasília is located, are among those under investigation, as is an adviser to President Michel Temer.

The president’s office had no immediate comment.

The news comes at a challenging time for the embattled Mr. Temer, who is himself under investigation for his alleged involvement in a different corruption case and faces calls for his resignation or impeachment. Mr. Temer has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.

Police said Tuesday they are looking for evidence that a group of builders made illicit payments to “political and public agents” to come out on top in the bidding for the contract to build the stadium. A judge ordered the freezing of assets of up to a combined 60 million reais ($18.4 million) belonging to 13 of the people allegedly involved, according to prosecutors.

Construction of the National Stadium of Brasília was originally estimated to cost 690 million reais, but the final price tag rose to 1.5 billion reais, making it the most expensive of the 12 Brazilian stadiums that hosted World Cup games, the police said.

Write to Jeffrey T. Lewis at jeffrey.lewis@wsj.com

Related

* Brazilian Bribery Allegations Escalate Clash Between Government, Businesses

* Five Ways Brazil’s President Could Be Forced Out

* Brazil President to Ask Court to Suspend Corruption Probe Linked to Him

* Political Crisis Grips Brazil as Firm Admits to Bribing Nation’s Leaders

Credit: By Jeffrey T. Lewis

Word count: 305

(c) 2017 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. Reproduced with permission of copyright owner. Further reproduction or distribution is prohibited without permission.

3- 2 Macomb Co. leaders charged with bribes

A federal corruption probe in Macomb County centered on trash hauler Rizzo Environmental Services has ensnared two more politicians — a current New Haven village trustee, who reportedly is a former Detroit transit police officer, and a former village trustee, with documents alleging that they collectively took $16,000 in bribes.

The charges against Trustee Christopher Craigmiles and former Trustee Brett Harris bring to five the number of politicians in the county charged in the widespread probe.

Craigmiles, 43, of Lenox Township and Harris, 57, of New Haven were charged today in U.S. District Court in Detroit, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Craigmiles was a friend of Harris, according to one of the charging documents.

A woman who answered the phone at the number for the committee to elect Craigmiles said “no comment at this time. Thank you.” Harris could not be reached for comment. Several other village officials, including President Chris Dilbert, could not be immediately reached.

According to a news release, “(Former Clinton Township Trustee Dean) Reynolds unwittingly introduced Harris to an undercover FBI agent who was posing as a consultant to a company that has contracts with various municipalities in southeast Michigan — referred to in the information as Company A. Reynolds told the undercover agent that Harris was a public official who would be willing to take bribes in exchange for his vote on a future contract with Company A.”

It goes on to say: “After being introduced to the undercover agent by Reynolds, Harris accepted multiple bribes amounting to $11,000 in cash from the undercover agent in exchange for his vote as a trustee on a future contract between New Haven and Company A. In August 2016, Harris then introduced the undercover agent to Craigmiles. Harris identified Craigmiles as being another New Haven trustee who would accept bribes.”

Craigmiles is accused of accepting a $5,000 cash bribe from the undercover FBI agent in August. He agreed to support a future contract for the company in exchange for the money.

According to the charging documents, Harris conspired with Craigmiles and Reynolds from March to August of 2016, with Reynolds introducing Harris to the undercover FBI agent March 31. Harris is accused of taking bribes four times — $2,000 each on March 31, April 27 and Aug. 19 and $5,000 on May 18.

Harris indicated that Craigmiles would accept a bribe and suggested at different times that it may take the form of cash or campaign assistance, according to the unsealed complaint against Craigmiles.

Harris said he would support the contract and that he needed the support of Craigmiles and that they needed to get him elected. For the $5,000 bribe, Harris said he would share some of the money with Craigmiles, but changed his mind and apparently didn’t give him any, according to the complaint against Craigmiles.

There was even discussion about whether Craigmiles would take a bribe given that he was a former transit police officer. Harris told the undercover FBI employee that he’s not “gonna say I got a hundred percent trust in nobody …” later saying “I’m leading him.” Harris said he tested Craigmiles by talking with him about “this other deal” about how marijuana growers want to operate in the village and what would be necessary to assist him, according to the court records.

They also state that on Aug. 3, Harris, Craigmiles and the undercover FBI employee met in the garage at Harris’ house and the employee paid Craigmiles $5,000 in FBI funds in exchange for his vote on the contract with Company A. The undercover FBI employee talked about how the principal of the company, who was the subject of an FBI telephone wiretap, was confronted with evidence against him and is cooperating with the investigation, according to the documents.

The undercover FBI employee said the big concern was the bid coming up in 2018 or sooner and that whatever Harris could do for the principal “it’s much appreciated.” The undercover FBI employee also said that the principal wanted to steer away from the election, according to the complaint.

It states that the undercover FBI employee gave Craigmiles $5,000, but didn’t give any money to Harris.

“Why, where’s my (expletive) money?” Harris said, according to the complaint.

The investigation included telephone wiretaps, consensual audio and video recordings by cooperative individuals, undercover operations, physical surveillance, telephone tracking warrants and subpoenas of financial records and documents.

Craigmiles was appointed to the village board and had to run in the election. He was the top vote-getter in the November trustee race, in which four people vied for three, four-year seats. Harris lost.

The charging documents don’t name Rizzo Environmental Services, but the Free Press has learned from sources close to the investigation that Rizzo is the company involved.

GFL Environmental — the Canada-based company that bought Rizzo just weeks before the FBI disclosed its corruption investigation — issued this statement: “GFL Environmental USA Inc. does not currently contract waste hauling services for the Village of New Haven. Rizzo Environmental Services last served that municipality in October 2014 until the contract was awarded to another company after a competitive bidding process. Per the press release issued today by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan, criminal complaints were filed as a result of an undercover investigation. No past or present employee of GFL Environmental USA Inc. is referred to in the charging documents and none were involved in the alleged incidents. GFL Environmental USA Inc. continues to cooperate with law enforcement officials in their investigations.”

Rizzo Environmental Services, which had trash contracts in more than 50 communities across metro Detroit, has not been charged in the case. GFL is rebranding all of Rizzo’s trucks and painting them lime green. Chuck Rizzo Jr., the former president and CEO of Rizzo, resigned from the company on Oct. 25 — the same day that a second politician was charged with taking bribes from Rizzo Environmental Services.

Craigmiles is charged with taking a bribe in exchange for his official acts in connection with a municipal contract. Harris was charged in a criminal information with accepting multiple bribes in exchange for a promise to support a future municipal contract for the village, according to a release. It also states that Harris is accused of conspiring with Craigmiles and Reynolds to engage in bribery last summer.

Reynolds, who lost a Clinton Township supervisor race in November, is one of three people already charged in the widespread probe. He was indicted on charges that he accepted bribes from Rizzo Environmental Services for helping Rizzo secure an $18-million contract extension. He also is charged with taking bribes from a second unnamed business that the FBI has long had its eye on.

Former Macomb Township Trustee Clifford Freitas and former Chesterfield Township Supervisor Michael Lovelock are other two politicians who have been charged in the pay-to-play probe. Freitas worked for Rizzo while the company was trying to secure a garbage contract.

“Our elected officials must make decisions based on what is best for the people and our communities, not based on whether they are given cash,” U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade said in the release. “Elected officials who violate the public trust by accepting bribes must be arrested and prosecuted.”

David P. Gelios, special agent in charge of the Detroit FBI, agreed, saying “Today’s announcement of public corruption charges, in the Village of New Haven, demonstrates the FBI’s unyielding commitment to aggressively investigate public servants, past or present, who accept bribes in exchange for official actions. Illegal conduct as described today erodes the trust and confidence community members place in their elected officials and threatens the integrity of our system of governance.”

Court appearances for Craigmiles and Harris will take place next week. If convicted, Craigmiles faces up to 10 years in prison and up to a $250,000 fine while Harris faces up to five years in prison and up to a $250,000 fine.

Contact Christina Hall: chall99@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter: @challreporter.

Word count: 1344

Copyright 2017 – Detroit Free Press – All Rights Reserved

Interview

Iinterviewed with my close friend’s father online that who was all too willing to talk about a scandalous event that had occurred in the community when he was young. At that time, the then mayor of the city was taking bribes from different companies so that they could have favorable outcomes in the bidding of city construction and supply tenders. Apparently, by the time people caught wind of this, it had been going on for two years. The issue could not be solved quietly because the press got wind of it and dragged the name of the city through mud thus soiling its reputation.

After the story became public, the state government ordered that a check be conducted upon all the projects that had been carried out in the city within the two years. The outcome was that the constructions were discovered to be substandard and most had to be brought down resulting in a wastage of public funds. The follow up story on the newspapers dictated a city of ruins as buildings were brought down to avert the risks that they posed to the community. Luckily, there had been no accident from a falling building that could have cost human lives.

I was comfortable talking to the man because he was willing to speak out against what he felt was an injustice that had been performed on the city. From the experience, I learnt that people will always remember what they felt was an injustice against them by those in power. Further, they will speak out against such practices if they feel that it would help avert future occurrences. As journalists, we are entrusted with the role of airing the stories of such people and that is a role we should carry out.