Scheme

Federal prosecutors have accused a Northern California man of running a foreclosure rescue scheme in which he exploited bankruptcy laws to delay home seizures by lenders. Authorities have grown increasingly concerned about schemes aimed at homeowners in foreclosure because, they say, these types of scams can prevent borrowers from getting legitimate assistance with their foreclosures. A federal grand jury indicted Walter Bruce Harrell of Montara -- roughly 20 miles south of downtown San Francisco -- on charges of bankruptcy fraud and two counts of making false statements in bankruptcy court.

Herbalife Ltd. had some good news - and a little bad - as the nutritional products giant released its fourth-quarter results. The good: Sales of its weight-loss and nutritional products increased 20% to $1.1 billion in the quarter, and profit surpassed Wall Street's projections. And the company expects 2013 to be even better. The bad: Herbalife could spend $10 million to $20 million this year in "legal and advisory services" to fend off allegations made by a Wall Street hedge fund manager that it is operating a pyramid scheme.

NEW YORK - It's no longer just a war of words. Corporate raider Carl Icahn has thrown $214 million behind Herbalife Ltd., the Los Angeles-based maker of health foods and nutritional supplements accused of being a pyramid scheme by Icahn's foe, fellow Wall Street tycoon Bill Ackman. Documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday reveal that Icahn purchased more than 14 million shares and options in Herbalife, a nearly 13% stake that would make him the company's second-largest investor.

California lawmakers have long complained about being shortchanged by Washington, D.C.: California taxpayers put a lot more into the U.S. Treasury than the state gets back in federal spending. One politician is proposing an unorthodox approach to grabbing some of those dollars back. Sen. Kevin DeLeon (D-Los Angeles) is promoting a scheme through which he says taxpayers could seize on a loophole that recently emerged in federal tax law to raise hundreds of millions of dollars for higher education.

Federal agents arrested 14 people - including a former deputy district attorney - for allegedly running a stock manipulation scheme from Southern California that cost investors more than $30 million. Authorities said the scheme involved the heavy promotion of worthless stocks, which the perpetrators later sold for huge profits in a classic “pump-and-dump” scheme. One of the stocks - for a company called frogads.com - was promoted in an infomercial by actress Pamela Anderson.

A donor to the mayoral campaigns of City Controller Wendy Greuel and council members Eric Garcetti and Jan Perry was fined $170,000 on Thursday by the Los Angeles Ethics Commission for laundering dozens of campaign contributions. Peter Barker, president of Orange County-based Barker Management, admitted he had reimbursed employees or their spouses for 68 contributions given to an array of city campaigns over 12 years, including the mayoral bids of Greuel, Garcetti and Perry. The practice, known as campaign money laundering, enabled him to bypass city contribution limits.

Herbalife Ltd. shares rose after a profanity-filled battle on live television between two billionaire investors with vastly different views of the Los Angeles company. Bill Ackman, who has an enormous short position on Herbalife and has called the company a pyramid scheme, and Carl Icahn, who reportedly has a long position on the company, traded personal insults during a nearly 30-minute telephone discussion aired live Friday on CNBC. Icahn called Ackman a "liar" and said: "He's got one of the worst reputations on Wall Street.

The Bell corruption trial began Thursday with prosecutors depicting six former council members as greedy operators who schemed to collect outsized salaries by serving on various government boards that did nothing. But attorneys for the former officials portrayed them as helpless pawns. They claim former City Administrator Robert Rizzo controlled the city and was the mastermind of the alleged corruption. Ronald Kaye, attorney for former Councilman George Cole, went as far as to say the council members were "in a cocoon" and that Rizzo "didn't let them know what was going on in the city.

Sergio Santiago Syjuco said he looked up to Richard Han, who was older, wealthy and clearly important. When Han went into karaoke clubs in the Philippines - which were widely known to double as brothels - he always got the biggest private rooms and the best service, Syjuco said. Managers would offer dozens of young women as paid companions for Han and members of his party, Syjuco said. Han boasted that he was an international arms dealer and he picked up the tab for all the booze and sex, Syjuco said.