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Justice Dept: COVID-Related Directives Can't Treat Religious Groups Differently Than Businesses Justice Dept: COVID-Related Directives Can't Treat Religious Groups Differently Than Businesses
Justice Dept: Covid-related Directives Can't Treat Religious Groups Differently Than Businesses Although state and local governments may issue coronavirus state-of-emergency directives, "there is no pandemic exception to the Constitution and its Bill of Rights," the Justice Department said Sunday. Federal authorities issued the statement in support of a Virginia church whose pastor was charged criminally with conducting a worship service attended by 16 people in a 225-seat sanctuary. But its message extends well beyond the specific case, as federal authorities continue examining state and local emergency orders to see whether they'd stand up to a constitutional challenge. The Lightho…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Israel’s Largest Bank Pays $900 Million In Offshore Tax Evasion Scheme, Soccer Payoffs Israel’s Largest Bank Pays $900 Million In Offshore Tax Evasion Scheme, Soccer Payoffs
Israel’s Largest Bank Pays $900 Million In Offshore Tax Evasion Scheme, Soccer Payoffs Israel’s largest bank and a Swiss subsidiary agreed in federal court in Manhattan on Thursday to pay $874.27 million to the U.S. Treasury, the Federal Reserve, and the New York State Department of Financial Services to settle offshore tax-evasion charges. At the same time, Bank Hapoalim B.M. and its wholly owned subsidiary, Hapoalim (Switzerland) Ltd., agreed to pay more than $30 million to the United States to resolve a federal investigation into their roles in laundering bribes and kickbacks to the world governing body for soccer. As part of the tax-evasion settlement, Bank Hapoalim B.M.&…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Feds Smash Hundreds Of Online Coronavirus Scams -- And Tell You What To Look For Feds Smash Hundreds Of Online Coronavirus Scams -- And Tell You What To Look For
Feds Smash Hundreds Of Online Coronavirus Scams -- And Tell You What To Look For Federal authorities said they've gotten help from domain providers and others in smashing hundreds of online sites exploiting the COVID-19 pandemic to commit fraud and other crimes. As of Tuesday, the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) had received and reviewed more than 3,600 complaints related to COVID-19 scams, the Justice Department said Wednesday. Many of them “operated from websites that advertised fake vaccines and cures, operated fraudulent charity drives, delivered malware, or hosted various other types of scams,” federal officials said in a release. To attract traffic, t…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Chipotle Paying Feds Record $25 Million Fine For Foodborne Virus That Sickened Customers Chipotle Paying Feds Record $25 Million Fine For Foodborne Virus That Sickened Customers
Chipotle Paying Feds Record $25 Million Fine For Foodborne Virus That Sickened Customers Chipotle Mexican Grill has agreed to pay the federal government an unprecedented $25 million to resolve criminal charges stemming from a foodborne virus outbreak that sickened more than 1,100 customers nationwide, the Justice Department announced. The fine -- the largest ever in a federal food safety case -- is part of a three-year deferred prosecution agreement that will allow the California-based company to avoid a criminal conviction if it complies with an improved food safety program, DOJ officials said Tuesday. Papers filed in federal court in Los Angeles on Tuesday charge Chipotle wit…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Feds: 192,000 Respirator Masks, More Seized From Black Market Dealer Sent To NJ, NY Front Lines Feds: 192,000 Respirator Masks, More Seized From Black Market Dealer Sent To NJ, NY Front Lines
Feds: 192,000 Respirator Masks, More Seized From Black Market Dealer Sent To NJ, NY Front Lines A total of 192,000 N95 respirator masks and other personal protective equipment seized from a black market dealer busted by the FBI is being sent to the front lines of the fight against the coronavirus in New Jersey and New York, federal authorities announced Thursday. The distributed equipment also includes 130,000 surgical masks, procedure masks, N100 masks, surgical gowns, disinfectant towels, particulate filters, bottles of hand sanitizer, and bottles of spray disinfectant, they said. The equipment was seized from Baruch Feldheim, 43, who federal authorities said had enough black market…

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by Jerry DeMarco