Monday, May 11, 2009

The Wetherly Agent I Blogged About Today, Pleas GUILTY TO Securities Fraud!

Alright, you gotta watch the signs from Uncle Zuma Dogg, cause I have to be subtle, but if you read this blog earlier today, you may have seen me re-post this item, which I posted initially, yesterday:

LA DAILY BLOG ASKS FOR YOUR HELP IN SOLVING A CRIME: Maybe some of you can help ZD with THIS:"...have him tell you everything about Julio Ramirez of Wetherly and the interesting role in his dealings with Democratic Governor Gray Davis."Julio worked with Wetherly Capital on a $100 Million "Special Situation" Fund for Simon & Sons in 2002, when Dan Weinstein was backing Gray Davis! The $100 Million for Simon's "special situation" fund was to be collected from CalPERS,CALSTRS, NY Common, Orego, WA State, Rhode Island and Colorado fire and police pension funds -- and Mr. Ramirez was the pitch guy for Wetherly.So I understand that Julio has some interesting information regarding the 2002 California Gubernatorial election, in which the Wetherly-backed Gray Davis won re-election against Bill Simon (who Wetherly was simulatneously trying to raise $100 Million out of pension funds from across the country for Simon's "special situation" fund. This item holds the key to uncovering "ELECTION FRAUD!"

IF YOU HAVE ANY INFORMATION REGARDING THIS "SPECIAL SITUATION" PLEASE EMAIL ZumaDogg@Gmail.com.


And now, 19 minutes ago from Wall Street Journal...

'Pay to Play' Font sizeProbe Ensnares Another
Wall Street Journal
- May 11, 2009
- 19 minutes ago

'Pay to Play' Probe Ensnares Another

The New York attorney general is expected to announce soon that an associate of Hank Morris, the indicted political adviser at the center of New York's "pay to play" pension probe, has pleaded guilty to securities fraud and is cooperating with the investigation, according to people familiar with the matter.

Julio Ramirez, age 48, has pleaded guilty to a criminal misdemeanor charge, according to people familiar with the matter. The Securities and Exchange Commission, conducting a parallel investigation, is expected to announce civil charges against Mr. Ramirez.

Hank Morris
Associated Press

Mr. Morris was charged in March with perpetrating a scandal in which he allegedly extracted sham fees in return for investments from New York State's large pension fund. Mr. Morris has denied the charges. Mr. Ramirez, based in the Los Angeles area, pleaded guilty for his participation in a series of fraudulent transactions between Mr. Morris and others, a person familiar with the matter said.

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.

New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo has said Mr. Morris and his associates 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.

The wrongful conduct to which Mr. Ramirez pleaded guilty in part concerns dealings between Mr. Morris and a Los Angeles-based placement agent firm called Wetherly Capital Group, as well as a Dallas-based firm called Aldus Equity Partners, according to a person familiar with the matter.

In 2003, Mr. Ramirez recommended to Wetherly, where he was then employed, that the firm work with Mr. Morris to get pension business, according to a Wetherly spokesman.

Under this arrangement, Wetherly paid Mr. 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," a Wetherly spokesman said. Mr. Morris also confirmed to the firm's principal that this was his preferred method of payment, the spokesman added.

Mr. Morris's lawyer didn't respond to requests for comment.

The attorney general's indictment alleges that certain payments from Wetherly to Mr. Morris were "proceeds of criminal conduct." Two of these payments, for a combined $313,750, are described in the indictment as money laundering by Mr. Morris.

Wetherly has not been accused of wrongdoing. A person familiar with the attorney general's probe said Wetherly "has come within the scope of the investigation." In a statement, Wetherly said it has received "information requests" from the attorney general, has cooperated and is "confident that investigation will confirm that Wetherly has engaged in no wrongdoing."

Separately, Mr. Ramirez in 2004 told Saul Meyer, founder of Aldus Equity, that Aldus should hire Mr. Morris if it wanted help securing money from New York's state pension fund, according to people familiar with the matter. Mr. Meyer last month was charged with securities fraud in the case by the New York attorney general. He has pleaded not guilty.

Shortly after leaving Wetherly, Mr. Ramirez in 2005 joined the placement-agent business of private-equity firm Blackstone Group, known as Park Hill Group. He left at the end of March, according to a Blackstone spokesman.

Following Mr. Ramirez's departure, Blackstone initiated an internal investigation into his work while he was at Park Hill. The firm concluded he hadn't violated "our high standards of conduct or evaded our rigorous controls," the spokesman said.

In another development, the nation's largest public pension fund, California Public Employees' Retirement System, adopted a new policy Monday requiring investment firms to disclose fees and other information about the placement agents they hire to seek Calpers's business. The new policy also requires placement agents to register with regulatory authorities.

DO YOU KNOW WHAT THIS MEANS PEOPLE???

More to come..this is huge, and should send a CLEAR message to some certain folks..You think I blogged that stuff out of no where for no reason? NO ONE WAS MENTIONING HIS NAME, THEN OUT OF NO WHERE...BAM!!!...Zuma Dogg is blogging about him.

Arnold must be saying , "Damn, that Zuma Dogg!!! He was just telling me about the things, with the money, and the pensions, with the Wetherly, and with the Weinstien, and the things and in New York...I don't know how he do it? Maybe we should hire him to make the cuts, for the budgets, with the money and the problems, with the things...

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO KNOW WHAT IS NEXT AND WHERE THIS IS HEADED...call me, my computer screen is blinky and I am broke and hungry...maybe I'll make you wait and sweat it out...I MEAN THE CRIMINALS!