Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, commonly referred to as the RICO Act or simply RICO, is a United States federal law that provides for extended criminal penalties and a civil cause of action for acts performed as part of an ongoing criminal organization. The RICO Act focuses specifically on racketeering, and it allows the leaders of a syndicate to be tried for the crimes which they ordered others to do or assisted them, closing a perceived loophole that allowed someone who told a man to, for example, murder, to be exempt from the trial because he did not actually commit the crime personally....One of the predicate offenses is securities fraud which is a broad enough heading that a smart prosecutor can fit it to almost any pattern of behavior by a banker/trader.
From MarketWatch:
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. JPM -2.74% is under investigation by the Department of Justice for allegedly manipulating the U.S. energy markets, The Wall Street Journal reported Monday citing people familiar with the case. This is the latest probe against the biggest U.S. bank by assets which is facing mounting legal and regulatory scrutiny. The firm settled last month with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission for $410 million after being accused of manipulating energy markets in California and the MidWest. The firm did not admit wrongdoing as part of the settlement. The Justice Department's probe started just in the last few weeks as the regulatory settlement was being concluded. The probe is said to be in the early stages and is being handled by Preet Bharara, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York.
