The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission announced Sept. 1 that it, too, was dropping its case against Wall Street financier Benjamin Wey, in the face of a sweeping evidence suppression order in the criminal suit against Wey.

In a letter to U.S. District Judge Kevin Castel of the Southern District of New York, SEC assistant chief litigation counsel Derek Bentsen said the decision by Castel's Manhattan colleague, Judge Alison Nathan, to suppress evidence gathered at Wey's home and business left the commission no choice but to voluntarily dismiss charges against Wey and his wife.

“After reviewing the relevant Second Circuit law, in light of the particular facts of this case, the SEC believes its ability to introduce the seized evidence against certain defendants may also be affected,” Bentsen wrote.