NY AG Cuomo trying to reach deal with Rattner: report

New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo is seen in New York June 5, 2008.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo is trying to reach settlements with Steven Rattner, who led the U.S. autos task force, and the private equity firm he co-founded, the Associated Press reported on Tuesday.

The Treasury Department said on Monday that Rattner will leave as head of the autos task force, which oversaw bankruptcies at General Motors Corp and Chrysler Group.

Cuomo has recently started pushing Rattner and the Quadrangle Group to settlements that would allow them to avoid civil charges, the AP reported, citing a source familiar with the investigation.

Cuomo does not want to press criminal charges, the AP reported.

Rattner, a former journalist, made his name as a media banker and co-founder of media-focused Quadrangle, and surprised Wall Street when he took the autos role in the government in February.

But in recent months Quadrangle and Rattner have been linked to the corruption probe by Cuomo into the pensions industry.

A source familiar with the matter told Reuters on Monday that Cuomo's investigation of Rattner has "intensified" in recent weeks.

Quadrangle declined to comment. A spokesman for Cuomo's office was not immediately available.

(reporting by Paritosh Bansal, Megan Davies and Yinka Adegoke)