The government’s chief witness was the fired loan officer. Nevertheless, a case was brought against Abacus Bank, claiming falsely that the corruption was systemic and all the officers were guilty of crimes that could land them in prison. In the years surrounding the housing crisis, Abacus officers learned that one of their workers was falsifying loan documents and extorting money from prospective clients. Like George, Tom and his family found great satisfaction in helping members of his community, most of them immigrants, to buy their first homes.
#ABACUS BANK COURT DATES TV#
In opening scenes that are indicative of the film’s tendency to overstate its case, the venerable Tom Sung, a 79-year-old respected Chinatown attorney and founder of Abacus Bank, and his spunky wife, Vera, sit in front of their TV in Connecticut, watching Frank Capra’s “It’s a Wonderful Life.” Tom openly identifies with the film’s George Bailey. Vance gamely appears on camera to make his case and seems entirely oblivious to the fact that he was completely wrong to bring the case forward and that in large part the prosecution was driven by prejudice.
In “Abacus: Small Enough to Jail” (an ironic counter to the infamous “too big to fail”), Academy Award-nominated director Steve James (“Hoop Dreams”) paints a slightly problematic, nonfiction David and Goliath portrait of what can only be called a complete travesty of justice perpetrated by the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office led by Assistant District Attorney Cyrus Vance?Jr. Would it surprise you to know that the only American bank indicted and brought to criminal court for its role in the 2008 financial crisis was the small Chinese-American owned and operated Abacus Federal Savings Bank of Chinatown, New York City?
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