Insider trading at SEC?

Still a fair amount to sort out, but federal prosecutors are looking into whether two SEC enforcement lawyers violated insider-trading laws - specifically, they're investigating multiple suspicious cases where the lawyers traded stocks of companies around the time the companies were under investigation. Insider trading is notoriously hard to prove, and the news accounts do not indicate a lot of whys and wherefores. Still, the basic information is disturbing enough. From the WSJ:

The report didn't identify the employees. One, who the report said had been with the SEC since 1981, is a female staff lawyer, according to people familiar with the matter. The report said the other is a man who works in the enforcement division's chief counsel office, a key position that vets all cases, ensures consistency across the division, and often offers advice to attorneys. The two plus another enforcement lawyer had a "standing lunch" on Monday where they often discussed stocks and financial markets, according to the report. It said one made more than 200 trades over two years.

Call me crazy, but should SEC enforcement lawyers be trading stock under any circumstances? Why not just stick to mutual funds, which is the way many business journalists handle potential conflicts.

The partially redacted inspector general report said the SEC has "essentially no compliance system" to detect potential insider trading. It said the agency didn't conduct spot checks on trading and the various offices that received trading reports didn't share information. The report recommended disciplinary action against the two employees, who both continue to work for the agency.

No compliance system? The SEC?