Business Notes Investigations

As investigators probe the wreckage of the Robert Maxwell empire, the mess just gets uglier. British investigators believe that the late media mogul looted some $1.5 billion from the pension funds and coffers of public companies under his control, about twice the original estimate. Auditors also found that debts owed by Maxwell's private companies exceed $3.3 billion, up $830 million from earlier estimates, and that Maxwell allegedly schemed to bolster the stock price of one of his companies by illegally paying investors to buy shares.

The spotlight now is on Maxwell's sons. Last week a British judge revoked Kevin and Ian Maxwell's passports and froze up to $813 million of Kevin's assets after the disclosure of his "substantial" involvement in questionable transfers of pension assets.