Richard Weber, a veteran financial crimes sleuth who led federal probes in the FIFA corruption and Silk Road online drug trafficking cases, is taking over as general counsel for the New York State Department of Financial Services. 

"The mission of DFS has never been more important than it is now," Weber said in a statement. 

DFS regulates financial services and products that are under New York's insurance, banking and financial services laws. The state agency currently oversees about 1,500 financial institutions with more than $2.6 trillion in total assets and some 1,400 insurers with assets totaling more than $4.7 trillion. 

Weber added in his statement that DFS and its leader, Superintendent Linda Lacewell, are "committed to fighting for New York's consumers and safeguarding our markets. I am honored to be part of this important agency and serve the people of New York at this critical time." 

An attempt to speak with Weber was not immediately successful. 

Weber's arrival at DFS marks a return to public service after a stint in the private sector that began in 2017, when he took a position as the managing director and head of financial crime prevention in the Americas for Deutsche Bank. In January 2019, he moved to a similar role at another global investment bank, UBS.

Before his Deutsche and UBS stints, Weber served as chief of the criminal investigation division for the IRS, where he led a team of more than 3,500 agents that investigated complex financial crimes, including money laundering and sanctions evasion. 

His work for the IRS in the Silk Road case helped take down Ross Ulbricht, who was convicted in 2015 of being the mastermind behind a drug-trafficking marketplace on the "dark web" and sentenced to life in prison. The investigation also netted a former undercover DEA agent, who pleaded guilty to selling Ulbricht fake driver's licenses and inside information about the Silk Road investigation in exchange for $100,000 in bitcoin payments.  

Weber also spearheaded the IRS investigation into an extensive bribery and kickback scheme involving soccer officials and executives in FIFA, or the Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 

During his five-year tenure with the IRS, Weber was responsible for the forfeiture of more than $15 billion in criminal penalties, according to the DFS announcement on his hiring. 

"Rich brings unquestioned integrity, legal acumen, and management experience to DFS," Lacewell said in a statement. 

"His extensive leadership experience and depth of legal knowledge will be vital in helping the state emerge stronger and safer from this unprecedented crisis," she added, referring to the coronavirus pandemic and its widespread financial repercussions.

Earlier in his career, Weber served as an assistant U.S. attorney for New York's Eastern District before joining the Justice Department, where he was chief of the asset forfeiture and money laundering section. He went on to serve as criminal investigations chief for the Manhattan District Attorney's Office before landing at the IRS. 

In his new role at DFS, Weber succeeds Kevin Bishop, who has served as acting general counsel and will stay on as executive deputy GC while continuing to lead the agency's regulatory and legislative portfolios. 

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