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From 1991 through 2008, Bernard L. Madoff Investment and Securities' (BLMIS) financial statements were audited by the accounting firm Friehling & Horowitz. In March 2009,
From 1991 through 2008, Bernard L. Madoff Investment and Securities' (BLMIS) financial statements were audited by the accounting firm Friehling & Horowitz. In March 2009, David Friehling, who was a CPA licensed by the state of New York, was arrested and charged with securities fraud, aiding Madoff with investment advisor fraud, and filing false audit reports with the SEC. The charges brought against Friehling include that he failed to do the following11: Conduct independent verification of BLMIS revenues, assets, liabilities related to BLMIS client accounts, and the purchase and custody of securities by BLMIS. Test internal controls over areas such as the payment of invoices for corporate expenses or the purchase of securities by BLMIS on behalf of its clients. Examine a bank account through which BLMIS client funds flowed. The SEC also filed a civil case against Friehling and his firm Friehling & Horowitz. The AICPA and the New York State Society of CPAs have expelled Friehling from membership. Under the AICPA's peer review program, auditors are monitored through mandatory peer review every three years. Friehling's work was not peer-reviewed because, since 1993, he had informed the AICPA that he did not perform audits, and therefore, would not need a peer review.12 At the time, New York was one of only six states that did not require accounting firms to be peer-reviewed. However, beginning January 1, 2012, New York firms with three or more accounting professionals must be peer-reviewed once every three years, 13 On November 3, 2009, Madoff's auditor David Friehling changed his plea from not guilty to guilty for the crimes involving the filing of falsely certified audits and financial statements with the SEC. Although Friehling was initially supposed to be sentenced in 2010, the sentencing was repeatedly postponed due to his cooperation with the government. In May 2015, citing his cooperation with the government, a federal judge sentenced Friehling to one year of home detention and one year of supervised release. Friehling lost his CPA license in July 2010. 2. After the Madoff case, the SEC instituted a number of reforms to its operations. Please visit the SEC's website (www.sec.gov) and search for Post-Madoff reforms. Next, please identify the two reforms that you believe will have the best chance of catching a criminal like Madoff. Make sure to provide justification for your choices
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