Book Review: Den of Thieves by James B. Stewart By: Algamar A Latiph (June 17, 2008)

“Once upon a time in the ‘80s four men nearly destroyed Wall Street… winning reporter tells their story, how they made billions and how they got caught,” the hard-bound book said on its front cover. For a change, I bought it for no apparent reason except my familiarity with the author, having read his first non-fiction book, The Partners. Second, I do not want to regret that I wasted my time in going to Book Sale (my first visit after more than a decade) in Harrison Plaza buying nothing in that last day of May.

Again, Mr. Stewart, Pulitzer Prize winner, had demonstrated his skills in making the book riveting as if I am reading a John Grisham novel (his early books). I am too unfamiliar in the field of stock market, but my journey on those pages gave me some interests in the world of Wall Street. I just discovered on that stock market creates insatiable greed, greed and more greed. I realized that stock market is always vulnerable to manipulation by few unless there are strict regulatory laws and enforcements.

The author narrated on how Michael Milken, junk bond expert, Ivan

Boesky, arbitrageur, Martin Siege, investment banker, Dennis Levine, also an investment banker, manipulated stock market and profited from it with millions. They were engaged in inside trading during the early 80’s in the Wall Street. It was the year were hostile takeover of multi-billion corporations and they were at the eye of these deals of century according to the author.

“Firms like Goldman, Sachs, Lehman Brothers, Kuhn Loeb (made up

historically of aristocratic German descent) had joined the ranks of the most powerful WASP [White Anglo-Saxon Protestant] firms: Morgan Stanley, First Boston, Dillon, Read, and Brown Brothers Harriman,” wrote the author. That the “Wall Street was still split between ‘Jewish’ and ‘WASP’ firms.” It happened that the four main players described by the author are of Jewish origin.

At one point, Boesky in his speech at University of California,

Berkeley told the graduating student that “Greed is alright” and that one can be greedy and feel good about it. Milken had profited from this nefarious activity for $550 Million in a year. Siegel and Levine profited tremendously.

It was not only about the world of Wall Street but about betrayal and

loyalty. When the US’ Securities and Exchange Commission and Rudolph Giuliani, then a Manhattan US Attorney, investigated their illegal activities, their friendship which was based on greed, crippled, as soon as their criminal activities were discovered. Levine implicated Boesky while the latter betrayed Milken. Siegel implicated his fellow co-officials in his firm. Their cooperation was not based on being remorseful of what they did but rather to save their skins so that light penalty could be imposed. All of them, however, served prison term.

I just realized that my visit at Book Sale was not wasted.