Mafia Takes Over Publicly Traded Company

Mafia Takes Over Publicly Traded Company

As Occupy Wall Street protestors chant about the criminals in the boardroom, actual thieves -- including men associated with the mafia -- have spent years quietly running FirstPlus Financial Group (FPFX), a Texas-based company and a one-time subprime lender that boasted former Vice President Dan Quayle as a board member, and used NFL Hall of Famer Dan Marino in its ads. On Tuesday, Nicodermo S. Scarfo, a made man within the Lucchese organized crime family, was arrested at his home. He's one of 13 men charged with the illegal takeover of the publicly traded company, among other racketeering charges. "The defendants gave new meaning to 'corporate takeover,' " said U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman.

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