MARKET WATCH: PHILADELPHIA — Acting United States Attorney Laurie Magid today announced the unsealing of three indictments and an information charging seven individuals with conspiracy and securities fraud. The charges pertain to four separate schemes designed to artificially inflate the prices of publicly traded stocks. Among those charged is Daniel Laikin, CEO of National Lampoon, Inc. which owns interests in the film “Animal House” and the “Vacation” series. These cases were the result of a long-term investigation, conducted in coordination with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), that detected ongoing stock manipulation schemes in the national securities markets. The SEC today filed separate civil actions against the same individuals. “The defendants in this case engaged in organized and on-going schemes to manipulate and artificially inflate stock prices of publicly traded companies for their own financial benefit,” said Janice K. Fedarcyk, special agent in charge of the Philadelphia Division of the FBI. “And in so doing, they defrauded all of the legitimate market investors who bought and sold shares in these companies. The entire investment market suffers when individuals violate the legal and fiduciary trust of their positions.” MORE
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THIS JUST IN: Inaugural Procession To Stop In Philadelphia
CHICAGO SUN-TIMES: Today, the 2009 Presidential Inaugural Committee announced that the President-elect, Vice President-elect and their families will travel — via railroad — to Washington, D.C. on Saturday, January 17th and host events along the way in Philadelphia, Wilmington, and Baltimore. The trip marks the final leg of a journey that began on the steps of the Old State Capitol in Illinois and will culminate on the steps of the United States Capitol. In the tradition of past Presidents-elect, the daylong trip will include a series of events on the way to Washington, DC. Saturday morning, President-elect Obama and his family will hold an event in Philadelphia before boarding a train bound for Wilmington, Delaware, where he will be joined by Vice President-elect Biden and his family. Together, the families will travel to Baltimore, Maryland, and hold another event, before finally arriving in Washington, D.C. on Saturday evening. In keeping with the theme of the 2009 Inauguration, “Renewing America’s Promise,” the President-elect and Vice President-elect will hold events in some of the cities instrumental to that promise: Philadelphia, where that promise was realized; Baltimore, where that promise was defended, then immortalized in our national anthem; and Washington, where Americans of all backgrounds will gather over four days, united in common purpose and resolved to renew that promise once more. MORE