Chais

Beverly Hills financial advisor Stanley Chais made a fortune serving as Bernard L. Madoff's connection to Southern California's rich and powerful. He hobnobbed with Hollywood elite, won praise as a generous philanthropist and kept homes on both coasts. These days, the 84-year-old Chais spends the bulk of his time shuttling from one medical appointment to the next, tormented by an ongoing federal criminal investigation and myriad lawsuits that could ruin him financially. Eight months have passed since the U.S. Attorney's Office in Manhattan disclosed that it was considering criminal charges against Chais, but there has been no indictment and little explanation of where the case stands.

A federal task force is investigating the fund-raising practices of the radical Jewish group Kahane Chai, which praised Hebron mass killer Baruch Goldstein as a "true hero," it was learned Friday. The interagency task force composed of representatives of the State Department, Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service is trying to determine whether the group, which he supported, has violated U.S.

The irony, at first, had been kind: A senior with no previous football experience, and slow afoot and lacking in strength at that, joined the team at Hawthorne High School and became an important and respected player. He did his best work on the field while getting beat up by teammates as a member of the scout team, the guys who practice as the opposition to prepare the first string for the next game, and few people probably enjoyed it more.

Stanley Chais, the Beverly Hills money manager whose clients lost hundreds of millions of dollars in the notorious Wall Street investment scam run by Bernard L. Madoff, died Sunday in New York. He was 84. Chais, who was facing a lawsuit by the Securities and Exchange Commission and was under criminal investigation by federal prosecutors in New York, died at an undisclosed location in Manhattan, said Ellen Borakove, spokeswoman for the New York City chief medical examiner. No cause was given, but Chais had been suffering from a rare blood disease.

Sarah Mandell and her husband, Bob Chew, wanted to cut their expenses and lead a "simpler life," so in 2004 they sold their house in Los Angeles and set out for the mountains of Colorado. To secure their future, they took the money from the house and invested it with Stanley Chais of Beverly Hills. It seemed like a safe bet: Chais was a wealthy investment advisor and trusted family friend who had produced strong returns for Mandell's relatives for two decades.

The Israeli government, reacting to the massacre two weeks ago of about 30 Palestinians in the West Bank city of Hebron, on Sunday outlawed two extremist Jewish groups as "terrorist organizations" because of their repeated violence against Arabs.

The International House of Pancakes in Alhambra was crowded with breakfasters at mid-morning on a weekday. So hardly anyone looked up from their silver-dollar pancakes when the small, slim woman trailing a translator, a reporter and a photographer walked in. But in one corner of the restaurant, a look of shock and then joy registered on the faces of a middle-aged Asian couple.

Chai Soua Vang, charged with killing six hunters and injuring two others in the woods of northwest Wisconsin in November, took the stand Thursday and outlined in chilling detail how he attacked the hunting party as they ran for cover and screamed for help. Vang, a 36-year-old National Guard veteran who lives in St. Paul, Minn., told jurors that the violent confrontation happened after he inadvertently trespassed on private property in Rice Lake, Wis.

UCLA fifth-year senior center Robert Chai could be playing the final football game of his career when the Bruins face Florida State in the Emerald Bowl on Wednesday. If that's true, Chai will not be disappointed thanks to UCLA's upset victory over USC this month. "We dedicated that game for Chai. We wanted him to go out with a bang," junior guard Shannon Tevaga said. "He's the leader of our offensive line and a player we all learn from on and off the field. He's our hero."

Chai Ling makes a strong first impression. The Princeton graduate is a sharp dresser, speaks English fluently and commands respect with her quick wit and steady eye contact. She also moves easily among top executives as she advises companies on management techniques. She'll tell you she is simply a successful young Boston businesswoman--who also happens to be the most wanted female criminal in China. Chai was one of the first students to converge on Tian An Men Square in the spring of 1989 and one of the first to refuse food until the government agreed to talk reform with the protesters.