Yo Jim Bishop
What is this about??
OT: seriously laughing my ass off right now.
DIGG news - Federal, state, county agents raid St. Clair Avenue residence
thecoaststar.com
File last updated 10/12/2006 at 14:29:36
Federal, state, county agents raid St. Clair Avenue residence
By Erin Scott
Orange cones and a Spring Lake Police Department police cruiser blocked off the area of St. Clair Avenue between Fourth and Fifth avenues yesterday as more than 30 agents and officers from various federal, state and county law enforcement agencies searched a residence at 409 St. Clair Ave.
Spring Lake Police officers, officers from the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office, IRS Special Agents, FBI Special Agents, agents from the US Postal Inspection Service and the New Jersey Bureau of Securities descended on the residence at approximately 9 a.m. Wednesday morning.
“I can only say that we’re here on official business,” said Special Agent Alan Drucker, a public information officer from the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation Unit.
“The prosecutor’s office is working a joint investigation with federal law enforcement and the state,” said Detective Sgt. Christopher Donohue of the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office Financial Crimes Unit. “It is an investigation involving a Brian Smith and a Digital Gas.”
According to records at the Spring Lake Tax Collector’s Office, the residence authorities were searching yesterday is owned by Lynn Smith.
Digital Gas, Inc., a company based out of Ann Arbor, Mich., “is a financier and business incubator of exceptional new technologies in the energy and natural resource fields,” according to its web site.
As of yesterday afternoon, the company was trading on the Over The Counter market at 30 cents a share.
Company press releases that had been submitted to Yahoo!’s Finance web site lists Mr. Smith as the company’s contact person. A phone number attached to Sept. 21 and Aug. 2 press releases was traced back as a phone number located in Belmar.
No one answered the phone at the Belmar number or at the Ann Arbor, Mich. number listed on Digital Gas’ web site. When dialed, both phone numbers had answering machines pick up after one ring which featured identical messages that said, “The number you are trying to reach is not available. Please leave a message after the beep.”
After most of the law enforcement agents had left the scene yesterday afternoon, Mr. Smith was inside the residence. Detective Sgt. William Coyle of the Spring Lake Police Department, who remained on the scene, went into the home and asked Mr. Smith if he would like to comment to a reporter on the case.
According to Detective Sgt. Coyle, Mr. Smith, “declined to comment at this time” because he wanted to discuss the matter with his wife before speaking to the press.
Information as to what the agencies were looking for at the residence was not provided by either Special Agent Drucker or Detective Sgt. Donohue.
Representatives from the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office and the United States Attorney’s Office in Newark did not return phone calls seeking comment as of press time.
File last updated 10/12/2006 at 14:29:36
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