Thomas Spiegel

Former Columbia Savings & Loan chief Thomas Spiegel, facing criminal charges that he looted millions of dollars from the failed thrift, has plenty of legal problems. Now he has a housing problem too. While Spiegel is asking the courts to let him pay more than $250 an hour so he can hire the lawyers he wants, he's defaulted on the mortgage covering his Beverly Hills mansion. This week he was served with an eviction notice. Who owns the house now? The U.S.

Ending the saga of one of the most prominent thrift failures of the past decade, former Columbia Savings chief Thomas Spiegel on Friday settled his longstanding civil dispute with federal regulators, agreeing to pay restitution to taxpayers of up to $275,000--a fraction of the $40 million the government had initially sought. In a significant concession, the U.S. Office of Thrift Supervision also dropped its demand that Spiegel be banned from the banking and thrift industry.

Ending the saga of one of the most prominent thrift failures of the past decade, former Columbia Savings chief Thomas Spiegel on Friday settled his longstanding civil dispute with federal regulators, agreeing to pay restitution to taxpayers of up to $275,000--a fraction of the $40 million the government had initially sought. In a significant concession, the U.S. Office of Thrift Supervision also dropped its demand that Spiegel be banned from the banking and thrift industry.

Thomas Spiegel, former chief executive of the failed Columbia Savings & Loan, was found not guilty Monday of federal charges that he looted the Beverly Hills-based thrift--charges that a defiant Spiegel said "never should have been brought." After a seven-week trial, a U.S. District Court jury in Los Angeles took only two hours--with a weekend intervening--to acquit Spiegel.

Federal prosecutors Monday portrayed Thomas Spiegel as an unscrupulous banker who treated Columbia Savings & Loan as if it were his personal piggy bank, but his lawyers said that Spiegel never broke any laws and was among the biggest losers when the Beverly Hills-based thrift failed. Brad D.

Many strange tales have surfaced in the nation's thrift debacle. Those of Columbia Savings & Loan and former chief executive Thomas Spiegel may top them all. Take Spiegel's obsession with security. Columbia's still-unfinished headquarters building in Beverly Hills comes equipped with two anti-terrorist bomb shelters. A $9-million hangar at the Van Nuys Airport built for Columbia's corporate jets included an electronic map that showed recent terrorist activity throughout the world.

In an echo of the 1980s, jury selection began Tuesday in the criminal trial of Thomas Spiegel, the once high-flying thrift executive who federal prosecutors say systematically looted millions of dollars from Columbia Savings & Loan of Beverly Hills before it was seized by regulators in 1991. Spiegel, a major player in the cast of the long-running S&L debacle, is the biggest government target to come to trial since Charles H. Keating of Lincoln Savings & Loan.

Like other scoundrels caught red-handed, convicted con man Barry Minkow says he has renounced crime and found Jesus--and he's banking on his dramatic conversion from Judaism to make a comeback. Sentenced to 25 years in prison in connection with one of the largest Wall Street scams ever, the founder of the ZZZZ Best carpet-cleaning company in the San Fernando Valley may be paroled from federal prison as early as next July, after serving about a third of his term.

The suit accused the directors of the S&L of breaching their fiduciary duties when they recently approved a new class of preferred stock that was intended to help the Spiegel family consolidate its control over the Beverly Hills company. Defendants in the suit, which was filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court, include Chairman Abraham Spiegel and his son, Thomas, who is chief executive. Thomas Spiegel declined comment.

Jury Still Out on Spiegel: Jurors in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles today will resume deliberations in the criminal case against Thomas Spiegel, former chief executive of failed Columbia Savings & Loan. The 46 charges that Spiegel faced when the trial began seven weeks ago have been whittled down to just three by Judge Robert M. Takasugi.

The much-shrunken federal criminal case against former Columbia Savings & Loan chief Thomas Spiegel went to a jury in Los Angeles Friday afternoon after his defense lawyer exhorted jurors to put a stop to the government's eight-year "vendetta" against Spiegel. The jury broke for the weekend around 5 p.m. after a little over an hour of deliberations. It was expected to resume Monday morning.

In another setback for prosecutors, a federal judge dismissed a second set of criminal charges against Thomas Spiegel, the former head of Columbia Savings & Loan now on trial in Los Angeles on allegations that he looted the failed thrift. On a motion by Spiegel's defense team, U.S. District Judge Robert M. Takasugi on Monday threw out eight felony counts charging Spiegel with illegally converting to his own use a $1-million condominium in Indian Wells, Calif.

After "a hard look at the evidence," federal prosecutors dropped one set of criminal charges against Thomas Spiegel, the former Columbia Savings & Loan chief now on trial in Los Angeles for allegedly looting the failed Beverly Hills thrift. Although the dropped charges formed only part of the government's case, they were among the most serious because they involved the largest amount of money lost.

The former owner of a Santa Barbara auto dealership testified Wednesday that Thomas Spiegel, the once-high-flying chief of Columbia Savings & Loan, personally tried to buy a half interest in his luxury-car business, but used more than $10 million of Columbia's money to complete the purchase.

In the most damaging testimony yet in the week-old trial of former Columbia Savings & Loan boss Thomas Spiegel, the former general counsel of the now-defunct financial institution testified Friday that Spiegel tried to keep $7 million in profits that rightly belonged to Columbia and became enraged when confronted with evidence of the alleged deception.

Former Columbia S&L Chief Pleads Innocent: The expected plea by Thomas Spiegel came during his arraignment in federal court on 55 counts accusing him of squandering Columbia assets for his own benefit and to support a luxury lifestyle. U.S. Magistrate Judge Joseph Reichmann set Aug. 25 as the trial date, although Spiegel's lawyers said they would file a motion asking for more time. Spiegel, who headed the now-defunct thrift until late 1989, was indicted last week.

Spiegel Hearing Delayed: A judge postponed until Thursday federal administrative hearings on whether former Columbia Savings & Loan Chief Executive Thomas Spiegel squandered Columbia funds. The delay is due to the fact Spiegel's lawyers are seeking documents that are part of a criminal grand jury investigation. Federal regulators with the Office of Thrift Supervision are seeking $40 million in restitution from Spiegel.

Federal prosecutors Monday portrayed Thomas Spiegel as an unscrupulous banker who treated Columbia Savings & Loan as if it were his personal piggy bank, but his lawyers said that Spiegel never broke any laws and was among the biggest losers when the Beverly Hills-based thrift failed. Brad D.

In an echo of the 1980s, jury selection began Tuesday in the criminal trial of Thomas Spiegel, the once high-flying thrift executive who federal prosecutors say systematically looted millions of dollars from Columbia Savings & Loan of Beverly Hills before it was seized by regulators in 1991. Spiegel, a major player in the cast of the long-running S&L debacle, is the biggest government target to come to trial since Charles H. Keating of Lincoln Savings & Loan.