Former AIG exec draws scrutiny

WASHINGTON, March 30 (UPI) -- U.S. investigators are looking into possible criminal fraud by a former American International Group Inc. executive, ABC News reported Monday.

Federal prosecutors and FBI agents are investigating Joseph Cassano, 54, who ran AIG's Financial Products Division, the U.S. network reported. The department lost hundreds of billions of dollars and Rep. Jackie Speier, D-Calif., told ABC Cassano "almost single-handedly is responsible for bringing AIG down and by reference the economy of this country."

ABC said its own investigation determined Cassano set up dozens of companies -- some off-shore -- to keep transactions off AIG books and hidden from U.S. and British regulators.

Cassano was paid more than $300 million to run the AIG Financial Products Division, through which AIG insured junk quality loans valued at more than $1 trillion, ABC said. He was fired in 2008 after the losses were reported, but he continued to draw $1 million a month until Congress took up a bailout of AIG, using $180 billion in public funds.

"They basically took peoples' hard earned money and threw it away, gambled it and lost everything," Speier said.

Tax law specialist Jack Blum told ABC the deals worked by Cassano's division were "absolutely toxic and most of the people who were dealing in it knew how toxic it was."

ABC News approached Cassano outside of his home in London but he would not discuss the allegations.