Dreier Wrings Dry his Clients – Both Rich and Poor
Dreier Wrings Dry his Clients Both Rich and Poor
On 13th July 2009 the hi-fi attorney Marc Dreier was sentenced to serve 20 years in prisons for cheating investors and other clients of $388 million. He would have hogged the limelight had not Bernie Madoff stolen the show. The legal firm of Dreier was entirely under his ownership and management. For decades it had been dealing with real estate. He moved in high circles creating a charmed world around him while cheating a bunch of victims no less deserving of being victimized than him. And this fact can have increase foreclosure.
Bernie Madoff spent hours working in his office busy cooking statements and playing around with accounts. But Dreier crated promissory notes bearing interest that were issued by real estate clients he had himself created. These were sold to hedge funds. He cheated the best and most glorified in Wall Street. Nobody thought of picking up the phone and checking on the issuer. Finally somebody did and that is the way he got nabbed. He cheated managers of hedge funds and has got away with only 20 years in prison. Actually he should have become an economic adviser to the Obama team for they have not thought out a way of outsmarting Wall Street till now!
The investors were not the only ones who were scammed. Dreier, akin to all other attorneys, kept an escrow fund to handle the money of his clients. It soon became Dreier's own piggy bank to meet the desperate needs of the lawyer. According to general rules two signatures are required to withdraw large sums from these accounts. But Dreier had clients eating out of his hands. One had kept $38 million requiring only Dreier's signature. It is needless to state that this led to loot making fools of real estate geniuses!
Dreier's stable was packed with shining young lawyers fresh from the best law schools. They were told not to worry about the business activities of the firm but to concentrate only on the legal aspects. These legal top brains found themselves fooled only when Dreier went down belly up.
Dreier was a genius par excellence he took for a ride managers of hedge funds, real estate tsars and topnotch lawyers. The ordinary people were also hurt the ones who always pay the price for big capers. They were secretaries, managers, courier messengers and janitors to name the few. They lost their jobs and their promised reimbursements. As for the super rich he took millions from those who like him had never toiled for their bread.