Whistleblower News from the Inside - December 23, 2013

By the C|C Whistleblower Lawyer Team

Fraud in Afghanistan getting better? – The U.S. embassy in Afghanistan is speaking out about the widespread fraud and corruption there in a program involving almost $100 billion of taxpayer money.  L.A. Times

Whistleblower tips soar in the UK – According to new research, the increase is due to “conscience, fear and the possibility of financial reward.”  Financial Times

Jump in dolphin deaths along Eastern Seaboard raise serious environmental concerns – “Marine mammals are very good sentinels for ocean and human health, and they really act like the proverbial canaries in a coal mine . . . of what’s occurring in the environment.”  NYT

US is major buyer of clothing from factories with unsafe and illegal working conditions – Suppliers of the $1.5B worth of clothing the US purchases every year from factories in countries like Bangladesh, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Mexico, Pakistan and Vietnam show a pattern of legal violations and harsh working conditions.  NYT  

Massive fraud at AgFeed coming to light as the SEC and others zero in – “Sometimes I really want to work well on the real stuff, but the need to balance the falsified data often takes up my time.”  Bloomberg

Genzyme to pay $22 million to settle False Claims Act allegations – The Sanofi subsidiary agreed to the deal to resolve charges that it improperly promoted the use of its “slurry” for preventing adhesions after surgery. DOJ