Corporate investigations

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan talks about his decision last week to cancel an emergency $12.5 million state contract for personal protective equipment with a company called Blue Flame Medical during a news conference, Wednesday, May 6, 2020, in Annapolis, Md. Hogan said he directed Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh to investigate for

Federal prosecutors subpoena Maryland PPE contract records

May. 6, 2020 6:35 PM EDT

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — Federal prosecutors have subpoenaed Maryland records relating to a $12.5 million contract for personal protective equipment that never arrived, a spokesman for Gov. Larry Hogan said Wednesday. Michael Ricci, Hogan's spokesman, confirmed in an email that Maryland has received subpoenas...

Medical personnel from Montgomery County, Md., check patients arriving for a COVID-19 drive-in testing in Silver Spring, Md., Tuesday, April 21, 2020. Maryland has dramatically boosted its testing capacity for the new coronavirus with a shipment of 500,000 tests from a South Korean company. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

Maryland seeks probe of company that failed to deliver masks

May. 2, 2020 7:27 PM EDT

BALTIMORE, Md. (AP) — Maryland officials are seeking an investigation into a politically connected company that contracted to provide the state with $12.5 million worth of personal protective equipment that never arrived. The Wall Street Journal reported that the state signed a deal on April 1 with Blue...

In this April 17, 2020, photo, Zachary Davis poses for a photo at The Penny Ice Creamery in Santa Cruz, Calif. An investigation by The Associated Press found that the federal Paycheck Protection Program, which was supposed to provide small businesses like Davis' with access to cash to support their employees, also provided hundreds of millions of dollars to large publicly traded companies. (AP Photo/Martha Mendoza)

AP: Publicly traded firms get $365M in small-business loans

Apr. 21, 2020 9:02 PM EDT

Companies with thousands of employees, past penalties from government investigations and risks of financial failure even before the coronavirus walloped the economy were among those receiving millions of dollars from a relief fund that Congress created to help small businesses through the crisis, an Associated...

Pedestrians wearing protective masks cross Canal Street Tuesday, April 21, 2020, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

What you need to know today about the virus outbreak

Apr. 21, 2020 8:48 PM EDT

Iconic events like the U.S. national spelling bee in June, Spain’s Running of the Bulls in July and Germany’s Oktoberfest are being scrapped because of the coronavirus pandemic, even amid growing impatience over shutdowns that have thrown millions of people out of work. The push to reopen has set...

FILE - In this April 2, 2020 file photo, a notice of closure is posted at The Great Frame Up in Grosse Pointe Woods, Mich. The government is closing in on the $349 billion lending limit on its Paycheck Protection Program that is sending relief money to the nation’s small businesses. The Small Business Administration says that it has approved more than 1.6 million loans worth more than $339 billion. The program will likely reach its ceiling Thursday, April 16. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya, File)

3 takeaways from AP review of small-business loan program

Apr. 21, 2020 8:21 PM EDT

Small businesses have, like much of the U.S. economy, been walloped by the coronavirus. In response, Congress created the Paycheck Protection Program to infuse small businesses — which typically have less access to quick cash and credit — with hundreds of billions of dollars in emergency loans so...

US prosecutors allege bribes in 2018, 2022 World Cup votes

Apr. 7, 2020 12:29 AM EDT

NEW YORK (AP) — Prosecutors revealed new details of alleged bribes paid to FIFA executive committee members to gain their votes for Qatar to host the 2022 World Cup and charged a pair of former 21st Century Fox executives with making illegal payments to win broadcast rights for the 2018 and 2022...