Kaptur Welcomes Report Of Justice Department Criminal Investigation Into Goldman Sachs

Press Release

Congresswoman Kaptur, the author of a congressional letter urging a criminal fraud investigation into Goldman Sachs, said today she is encouraged by a Wall Street Journal report that the U.S. Department of Justice is pursuing just such a probe.

"This is welcome news indeed," Kaptur said. "My colleagues and I are adamant that the American people deserve justice in the matter of Wall Street banks. Federal authorities should leave no rock unturned as they root out any potential fraud that triggered the crisis and caused thousands of families to lose their savings and their homes."

Kaptur led the charge on Capitol Hill for a letter to Attorney General Eric Holder, urging the Justice Department to "take up this case, to pursue justice for the American people, to put criminals in jail, and seek to restore the integrity of our nation's financial system."

Her effort in the House of Representatives netted 62 signatories. Activist groups then waged an on-line petition drive that obtained approximately 140,000 signatures. On Wednesday, Kaptur joined representatives of MoveOn.org and the Progressive Change Campaign Committee at the Justice Department to present the letter and the petitions together.

Kaptur said the week's events underscore the need for more concerted action against potential fraud in the financial sector. Kaptur is the sponsor of the Financial Crisis of 2008 Criminal Investigation and Prosecution Act of 2009 (H.R. 3995) that would authorize the hiring of up to 1,000 investigators by the FBI as well as additional personnel by the Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission's enforcement division.

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