July 22, 2014 — Attorney General Sean D. Reyes is meeting with other Attorneys General this week to discuss ways to fight organized crime. Read more about the meeting in this article from KSL’s Devon Dolan.
KSL.com: AGs from US, Mexico, El Salvador work together against organized crime
July 16, 2014 —The Utah Attorney General‘s Office announced a proposed settlement today of claims for monetary relief against Apple Inc. related to its participation in a price-fixing conspiracy in the market for E-books. The settlement agreement, which remains subject to approval by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, would resolve claims for consumer damages brought by Texas and 32 other states and territories, as well as the states’ civil penalty claims.
Pursuant to the terms of the settlement, the amount to be received by consumers is contingent upon the resolution of Apple’s appeal of the District Court’s July 2013 finding that Apple violated the antitrust laws by orchestrating a conspiracy with five publishers to artificially raise prices for E-books between 2010 and 2012. That appeal is currently pending before the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. Consumers nationwide (including those represented by private counsel in a related class action) will receive $400 million if the court’s ruling is ultimately affirmed. If the appellate courts do not affirm the court’s ruling, the settlement provides for a smaller recovery, or no recovery if Apple is ultimately determined not to have violated the antitrust laws.
“We are pleased with this settlement, which, combined with previous publisher settlements, will provide consumers with over twice their actual damages, assuming the liability finding is upheld on appeal,” said Utah Attorney General’s Markets and Financial Fraud Division Director David Sonnenreich. “I am pleased to have worked with Antitrust and Market Frauds Section Chief Ronald Ockey on this case and look forward to the final results from the appeal. Whenever there is evidence of alleged price fixing, we dedicate resources within our office to protect Utah consumers from antitrust violations.”
E-book purchasers nationwide have already received compensation from $166 million in settlement funds paid by the five publishers involved in the conspiracy – Penguin Group (USA), Inc. (now part of Penguin Random House); Holtzbrinck Publishers LLC d/b/a Macmillan; Hachette Book Group Inc.; HarperCollins Publishers LLC; and Simon & Schuster Inc.
Attorney General SEAN D. REYES Official Statement on Former Attorneys General Charges
July 15, 2014 — “This is a difficult day in the long and distinguished history of the office of the Utah Attorney General. Sadly, two men who served as leaders of our office have been charged with crimes alleged to have taken place during their administrations. I do not prejudge them and fully recognize that every defendant is entitled to the presumption of innocence. Neither do I defend or condone any of the alleged conduct. I have faith in our judicial system and confidence that, ultimately, justice will be served. I encourage the public to have patience and confidence in the process as well.
While our office will continue to cooperate with agencies investigating and prosecuting these cases, my chief concern today is to recognize the hundreds of outstanding public servants who work as attorneys, staff, and investigators in the Utah Attorney General’s Office. Each is diligently working to do the people’s business with excellence and great professionalism. They could be earning much higher salaries in the private sector but choose to serve the people of Utah, often without the positive acknowledgement they deserve. The House Special Investigators took great care to recognize and draw distinction between the professionals in the Utah Attorney General’s Office and any allegations or conclusions regarding former office-holders.
Since my appointment in late December, my new executive team and many respected leaders throughout our office have worked unceasingly to create a culture change and restore public trust. Today, the Utah Attorney General’s Office has new and renewed leadership teams throughout the Criminal, Civil and Appellate Departments. Divisions and sections have been refocused and even reorganized based on exhaustive research and careful assessment. The professionals on our team will continue to roll up our sleeves, stay hard at work, and defend the laws of our state while protecting Utah citizens and businesses against violent crime and white collar fraud.
Despite strong and differing opinions, and valid disagreement regarding important cases we are handling on behalf of the State, one area where all Utahns can agree is the need for the highest level of integrity in public service. We have and will continue to implement policies, protocols, and practices that demand such an elevated standard for the Attorney General’s Office.”
Utah Consumers Must File Claims by August 1, 2014
In the $310 Million DRAM Price Fixing Settlement
SALT LAKE CITY July 14, 2014 – The Utah Attorney General’s Office is urging consumers to look into their technology purchases between 1998 and 2002 to see if they are eligible for a settlement. The deadline for Utah consumers to file a claim in the $310 million DRAM Settlement is fast approaching. The Settlement involves 12 Dynamic Random Access Memory (DRAM) manufacturers over claims of price fixing. Consumers and businesses can file a claim if their purchases were between 1998 and 2002. Claims must be filed by August 1, 2014.
Purchasers of large amounts of DRAM or DRAM products could get $1,000s depending on the amount of product purchased. The minimum payment for smaller purchases of DRAM or DRAM products is expected to be $10. But the actual payment amount depends on the total number of claims filed and payments could be $25, $50 or more.
“Our office is dedicated to protecting consumers and companies from unlawful business practices,” said Attorney General Sean Reyes. “Assistant Attorneys General Ronald Ockey and Jim Palmer have worked for several years to achieve this positive result for Utah. Because this settlement impacts so many individuals and businesses in our state, I urge people to research their purchased items from the large list of manufacturers from 1998-2002 and file a claim.”
DRAM is a high density, low cost per bit, memory component that stores digital information and provides high-speed retrieval of data. DRAM is sold separately or pre-installed in electronic devices such as computers (laptops, desktops, and servers), graphics cards, video game consoles, MP3 players, printers, PDAs, DVD players, and Digital Video Recorders.
Claims can be filed online at www.DRAMclaims.com in five minutes or less. The deadline to file claims is August 1, 2014.
More information about the Settlement is available by:
· Visiting: www.DRAMclaims.com
· Calling: 1-800-589-1425 (toll-free)
· Emailing: Info@DRAMclaims.com
SALT LAKE CITY July 1, 2014 -In a case investigated by the Utah County Attorney’s Office and prosecuted by the Utah Attorney General’s Office Steven L. Flygare was convicted by plea of a Pattern of Unlawful Activity involving multiple acts of Securities Fraud and Communications Fraud and sentenced on June 27, 2014 by the Honorable Deno Himonas in the Salt Lake Third District Court. Pattern of Unlawful Activity is a second degree felony for which Mr. Flygare has been sentenced to an indeterminate term of 1 – 15 years in the Utah State Prison and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $2,220,231.55.
“This particular case is a wonderful example of how the Mortgage and Financial Fraud Unit works successfully with other agencies throughout the state to achieve justice,” said David Sonnenreich, Director of the Markets and Financial Fraud Division of the Attorney General’s Office. “Mr. Flygare’s case has taken great focus and collaboration and our office is extremely pleased with the tremendous results for Utah citizens.”
Steven Flygare is a 58 year-old Utah County resident who has been convicted of engaging in a pattern of unlawful activity against multiple individuals between January 2007 and at least September 2008. The unlawful activity included multiple acts of Securities Fraud and Communications Fraud related to various real estate developments and a water share project in the State of Utah. In connection with the victims’ investments, Mr. Flygare made numerous misrepresentations and omissions of material fact and used the majority of investor funds for personal and other expenses unrelated to the pitched investments. Mr. Flygare also purported to collateralize investments with property that he neither owned or had authority to encumber.
“White collar criminals are not welcome in Utah. Immediately upon taking office in December, I established a qualified and respected legal and executive team to help restore public trust in the critical functions of the Attorney General’s Office including more focused and unbiased investigation and prosecution of financial fraud,” said Attorney General Sean Reyes. “Because of this, we have taken extraordinary efforts to assess and restructure office-wide divisions and leadership. Hundreds of meetings with employees, agencies, legislators and other clients led to the establishment of a new Markets and Financial Fraud Division under David Sonnenreich. Our Commercial Enforcement Division, working with our tremendous partners at the Utah Department of Commerce, is now being led by Che Arguello. Since promoting these two individuals last month we have seen great progress. Over the years, both of these leaders have proven to be dedicated and successful advocates against financial crime in Utah.”
The Flygare case was investigated by Jeff Robinson of the Utah County Bureau of Investigations. Assistant Attorney General Che Arguello who has recently been elevated to Division Director over the Commercial Enforcement Division screened, filed and prosecuted the case.
