With this Scannell told his bosses he would no longer accept transfers from known market timers. His bosses were furious.

Two days later, Scannell was hit in head with a brick by a man wearing a "Boilermakers Local 5' sweatshirt. The Boilermakers Local 5 union were one of groups known to Scannell as engaging in market timing scandal.

Undeterred, Scannell went to Boston office of Securities and Exchange Commission. Five months went by. The agency didn't act on his tip, even though he had documents that backed up his claims which he had taken day after he quit.

Finally, Massachusetts regulators stepped in. They determined that in last three years at least 28 of unions members made between 150 and 500 trades, scoring gains of up to $1 million each. The investigators also zeroed in on two e-mails from firm's internal monitors: It appeared they had been aware of troublesome activity since spring of 2000.

This led to state civil fraud charges against Putnam, resignation of its CEO, Lawrence Lasser, and withdrawal of more than $20 billion from its funds.