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SEC halts destruction of investigative docs

The Securities and Exchange Commission is putting a stop to destroying documents related to investigations after a whistleblower claimed the agency illegally de...

Federal News Network Staff

September 8, 2011 7:14 pm

1 min read

By Jolie Lee
Federal News Radio

The Securities and Exchange Commission is freezing the destruction of investigative documents after a whistleblower claimed the agency illegally destroyed documents related to thousands of preliminary investigations.

In a statement emailed to Federal News Radio, an SEC spokesperson said, “We have been working with NARA [National Archives and Records Administration] on a new policy for records retention, and have determined to suspend the current policy out of an abundance of caution until a new policy is in place.”

The whistleblower, an SEC attorney, said the destroyed documents were MUIs – Matters Under Inquiry – which are the preliminary step to a full investigation. Among the records destroyed were MUIs reviewing AIG, Morgan Stanley, Bernie Madoff and Lehman Brothers, the whistleblower said.

In August, Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) requested information about SEC’s alleged unlawful destruction of records.

In a statement today, Grassley said, “This agency has been in knots over its documents policy. It makes sense to stop destroying records until it figures this out. The agency and the National Archives need to determine what records have to be kept, both for what’s logical for investigations and what’s necessary under federal law.”

Paul Wester, chief government records officer of the National Archives, said federal agencies cannot simply throw away old files. In an interview with Federal News Radio in August, he said schedules direct agencies how to dispose of documents that have only “temporary value.”

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