An indictment filed on Thursday in federal court in Charlotte, North Carolina charged the former head of Bank of America’s municipal derivatives desk, Phillip Murphy, with conspiracy to defraud the U.S, wire fraud, and conspiracy to make false entries in bank records.
Bank of America, which self-reported the illegal activity, has been cooperating for more than four years with Justice Department prosecutors who say that bankers paid kickbacks to CDR Financial Products to rig bids on investment contracts sold to local governments. Municipalities bought the contracts with money raised through bond sales, which allowed them to earn a return until the funds were needed for schools, roads, and other public works.
Hopefully, this is just the beginning.
