Massachusetts

April 01, 2008 -- BOSTON – Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley’s Office obtained a preliminary injunction late yesterday in a case against Lehi Mortgage Services, Inc. (“Lehi Mortgage”), a mortgage broker that allegedly fraudulently procured mortgage loans by submitting to lenders asset and income information for loan applicants that was fabricated or inflated.

For sale: (Photo: CC David Neubert)    » read more »

April 01, 2008 -- BOSTON – Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley’s Office has obtained an expanded preliminary injunction order against Fremont Investment & Loan (“Fremont”). This expanded preliminary injunction was issued by Judge Ralph D. Gants in Suffolk Superior Court on March 31, 2008, and prohibits Fremont from assigning or selling Massachusetts loans owned by Fremont, or the servicing obligations on those loans, unless the buyer agrees in writing to be bound by the obligations set forth in the Court’s Preliminary Injunction issued February 25, 2008.    » read more »

March 28, 2008 -- BOSTON – A Suffolk County Grand Jury has indicted a Falmouth couple for allegedly failing to report over $300,000 worth of income on tax returns they filed. Custodio Dematos, age 64, and his wife Fernanda, age 59, are each charged with Willfully Making and Subscribing a False Income Tax Return (3 counts), Willful Aiding or Assisting in the Preparation or Presentation of a Return, which is Fraudulent or is False, and Knowingly Filing a False Tax Return.    » read more »

March 19, 2008 -- BOSTON - On Monday, March 17, 2008, Hannaford Bros. Co. (Hannaford Brothers Supermarkets) announced that it had determined that a breach of its computer system potentially exposed customers’ credit and debit card numbers. annaford states that the unauthorized breach occurred during the time period of December 7, 2007 to March 10, 2008 and involved 4.2 million credit and debit card transactions.

While credit and debit card information may have been compromised, Hannaford states it has no evidence that names or addresses were obtained. There are currently approximately 2,000 cases of reported fraud associated with the data intrusion.    » read more »

Massachusetts Leads Investigation Resulting in $36.7 Million Settlement with the U.S. Government, 23 States and the District of Columbia

March 18, 2008 -- BOSTON – Today, the Office of Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley, along with federal authorities, 23 other states, and the District of Columbia, entered into a settlement agreement with CVS/Caremark Corporation to settle allegations of billing improprieties.    » read more »

Boston, Mass., March 17, 2008 – Nearly $5.4 million in grants and innovative financing are available to Northeastern communities and organizations working to significantly reduce diesel emissions and improve public health.    » read more »

March 14, 2008 -- WORCESTER – A Massachusetts Army National Guardsman was arraigned in Worcester District yesterday in connection with allegedly accessing and disseminating information from law enforcement data bases and the driving record of his former girlfriend. Earle Hoffman, age 39, of Lowell, is charged with Unlawful Dissemination of CORI Records (2 counts).    » read more »

March 13, 2008 -- BROCKTON – Yesterday, a Hull man was arrested in connection with representing himself as a stockbroker, and stealing money from a neighbor who entrusted him to invest more than $187,000. Jeffrey Gruber, age 44, is charged with Larceny over $250 (five counts) and Securities Fraud. Gruber was arrested by Massachusetts State Troopers assigned to the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office at his father’s Hull residence.    » read more »

Boston, March 10, 2008 -- EPA has ordered the town of Milford, Massachusetts to take steps to stop harmful sewage overflows from discharging from the Town’s sewer pipes onto streets and into buildings and surface waters, including tributaries of the Blackstone River and Charles River.    » read more »

March 05, 2008 -- BOSTON – Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley’s Office obtained a judgment against Thomas Dooley, III, a Beacon Hill real estate broker and his company, Y2K Realty, Inc. dba Louisburg Properties, which resolves claims that he and his company violated state antidiscrimination laws by discriminating against a prospective tenant who had a housing subsidy. The judgment, entered late yesterday by Judge Bruce R.    » read more »

Massachusetts to Receive over $16,000 in Settlement Monies

March 03, 2008 -- BOSTON - Today, Massachusetts Attorney General ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Martha Coakley’s Office reached a settlement with Florida based Directory Billing, LLC, (doing business as USDirectory.com) resolving allegations that the company engaged in deceptive business practices by using “live” activation checks to require businesses and organizations to pay for a preferred business listing on Directory Billing’s on-line yellow page directory, located at www.USDirectory.com.    » read more »

Massachusetts Consumers Paying Skyrocketing Prices at the Pump

02/29/2008 -- Washington, DC – Senator John Kerry today sent a letter to President Bush expressing his deep concern that the President and his Administration remain out-of-touch with skyrocketing gas prices across the nation.

Just yesterday, President Bush, when asked about predictions that gas prices would approach $4 a gallon, said, "That's interesting. I hadn't heard that."    » read more »

Kerry-Smith provision will help keep low-income families in their homes

02/28/2008 -- Washington, D.C. – Senator John Kerry expressed strong disappointment today when Senate Republicans blocked progress on legislation designed to stem foreclosures and address the housing crisis in America. Kerry vowed to continue his efforts to keep families in their homes and ease the skyrocketing rate of foreclosure across the country. Kerry urged the Senate Finance Committee to keep pursuing the goals of their proposal to address the subprime mortgage crisis.    » read more »

New England continues trend of lower releases to air, land and water

Boston, Mass., Feb. 21, 2008 – EPA’s most recent Toxic Release Inventory (TRI) data is now available for the reporting year of 2006. This year, due to continued increases in electronic reporting by industry, TRI data is available earlier than ever for both local communities and national analysis.    » read more »

Bill would expand Massachusetts Fishing Partnership Health Plan

02/13/2008 -- Washington, D.C.---Senators Edward M. Kennedy and John F. Kerry and Representatives Barney Frank, John Tierney, and William Delahunt today introduced bipartisan legislation to provide low-cost health coverage to fishermen and their families in Massachusetts and other coastal states. For Massachusetts, where the Fishing Partnership Plan currently provides health care to many fishing families, the bill would offer a valuable infusion of additional funds to keep the program on a firm financial footing.    » read more »