fraud

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Surge in Medical Identity Theft Cripples Credit Ratings

Fraud spreading with use of electronic medical records

(Newser) - Watchdog groups warn that medical identity theft is on the rise with the growing use of electronic records that lack proper safeguards, the New York Times reports. Fraudsters use stolen insurance information or Social Security numbers to get free medical care and the victims are often unaware they have been...

'Rockefeller' Guilty of Kidnapping, Faces 15 Years

(Newser) - A Boston jury found the con man known as Clark Rockefeller guilty of kidnapping and assault today in the abduction of his young daughter last year, the Boston Herald reports. He faces up to 15 years in prison when he's sentenced this afternoon. The jury found him not guilty of...

Butler: Astor's Mind Was Gone
 Butler: Astor's Mind Was Gone 
Jun 9, 2009 11:37 AM CDT

Butler: Astor's Mind Was Gone

(Newser) - Brooke Astor spent her final years in a haze as her faculties deserted her, her butler testified yesterday at the fraud trial of Astor’s son Anthony Marshall. As early as 1997, Astor’s memory started to fail her, leaving her unable to recall her servants’ names or even what...

FTC Shuts Down ISP Linked to Child Porn

(Newser) - The FTC has taken the rare step of shutting down an Internet Service Provider that it says was a haven for child pornography and malware run by Eastern European criminals, MSNBC reports. The case gives "a rare glimpse into the seediest parts of the web," writes Bob Sullivan....

Countrywide's Mozilo Charged With Fraud

Mozilo, two others accused of fraud, misleading investors

(Newser) - The SEC has charged former Countrywide chief Angelo Mozilo and two other former execs with civil fraud, the Wall Street Journal reports. The agency accuses them of insider trading and withholding information from investors about the condition of what was once the nation's largest mortgage company. They are the first...

Scammers Target Panicky Job Hunters
Scammers Target
Panicky Job Hunters
May 26, 2009 2:10 AM CDT

Scammers Target Panicky Job Hunters

Experts warn work-from-home frauds are mushrooming as unemployment rises

(Newser) - Scammers are taking advantage of the recession to con people desperately seeking work out of what little cash they have left, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. Watchdog groups warn that phony work-from-home offers promising quick cash in return for an initial outlay of money are proliferating, and that some fraudsters are...

Fugitive Execs: Good at Scams, Bad at Being on Lam

(Newser) - In the midst of a recession, so-called “executive fugitives” are driven to increasingly desperate efforts to flee as schemes implode and they face ruin—or prison time. NPR examines the tactics of these con artists—and how more often than not, say the law-enforcement authorities who chase them, their...

France Tries Scientology for Fraud
France Tries
Scientology for Fraud
May 25, 2009 6:44 AM CDT

France Tries Scientology for Fraud

(Newser) - The church of Scientology goes on trial for fraud today in a landmark case in France, reports the BBC. The American organization is widely regarded in the nation as a sect, and if Scientology is found guilty of a crime, it could be banned in the country. It's the first...

Scammer: I Forged Author Signatures

'Autographed' first editions brought big bucks in eBay fraud

(Newser) - A man who made more than $300,000 by selling "autographed" first editions of books that actually contained forged signatures pleaded guilty to fraud in a Philadelphia court today. Forrest Smith's offerings on eBay included books by Truman Capote, Norman Mailer, Anne Rice, Tom Wolfe, and Tom Clancy,...

Top Traits That Mean You're a Sucker

Researchers find a fifth of people are most likely to be fooled by fraudsters

(Newser) - British researchers have identified several traits that make a person more likely to be sucked in by a scam, the Daily Telegraph reports. The country's fraud watchdog warns that while nobody is immune to being conned, the following traits make around a fifth of the population most vulnerable:
  • An inability
...

Hsu Guilty of Squeezing Donors for Campaign Cash

Big Hillary fundraiser faces up to 20 years

(Newser) - Ponzi schemer and Democratic fundraiser Norman Hsu has been convicted of campaign finance fraud after two days of jury deliberations, the Wall Street Journal reports. Prosecutors said Hsu had pushed his investors to donate tens of thousands to his chosen political candidates, including Hillary Clinton, between 2004 and 2007. Hsu...

Supreme Court Shoots Down Jefferson's Appeal

But will review Conrad Black's conviction

(Newser) - The Supreme Court today refused to hear William Jefferson’s appeal, meaning the former New Orleans congressman’s corruption case is headed for trial, the Times-Picayune reports. The court will, however, consider overturning the fraud conviction against former media mogul Conrad Black and two of his compatriots.

Redstone Sued Over Midway Games Sale
Redstone Sued Over Midway Games Sale
May 14, 2009 11:26 AM CDT

Redstone Sued Over Midway Games Sale

Stake in Mortal Kombat company sold for peanuts for tax writeoff

(Newser) - Creditors of the video-game company behind the Mortal Kombat series are suing Sumner Redstone and board members after Redstone, Midway’s former majority owner, sold the company in a “fraudulent transfer,” the Chicago Tribune reports. Creditors say the media mogul sold his 87% stake for just $100,000...

E-Vigilantes Punk Scammers, Just for the Fun of It

Baiters delight in wasting crooks' time

(Newser) - Bait scammers are turning predators into prey, Ars Technica reports. “419 scammers” are crooks who demand upfront payment in return for money or services they never provide, but vigilantes are turning the tables by sending them on wild safaris or furtively coaching them into foolish practices—some spending as...

SEC May Charge Mozilo of Countrywide With Fraud

(Newser) - The long slide from the top continues for former Countrywide chief Angelo Mozilo. Staffers at the SEC have recommended filing a civil suit against him on charges of fraud and insider trading, reports the Los Angeles Times. Countrywide had been the nation’s largest mortgage lender before it nearly went...

$12B Withdrawn From Madoff Accounts Before Arrest

(Newser) - Operators of so-called feeder funds withdrew $12 billion from Bernie Madoff's accounts in the year before his arrest, nearly half of it in the final three months, reports the New York Times. The analysis of financial records offers hope that defrauded investors will be able to recoup at least some...

NY Lawyer Pleads Guilty to $400M Fraud

Dreier bilked clients, spent cash on yacht and beach houses

(Newser) - New York lawyer Marc Dreier pleaded guilty yesterday to selling hundreds of millions in bogus promissory notes to hedge funds and other clients, reports the Times. Dreier, 59, used the $400 million to fund a Manhattan apartment, beachfront houses, and an $18 million yacht. “He has disgraced the honorable...

Stanford Was a Drug Informant: Report

Fraudster was likely shielded from SEC in 2006 for his trouble

(Newser) - Allen Stanford may have received earlier protection from the SEC by working as a drug trade informant, a BBC investigation has found. The accused fraudster’s bank paid $3.1 million to the DEA a decade ago as a middleman for a Mexican drug lord, and in 2006 an SEC...

Madoff Victims' Advocate Sues Ezra Merkin

Trustee wants $558M back from feeder-fund withdrawals

(Newser) - The trustee representing investors who lost their savings with Bernie Madoff is suing Ezra Merkin, the feeder-fund manager who withdrew $558 million from Madoff's shop before the collapse of his Ponzi scheme. Irving Picard, who is responsible for winding down Madoff's defunct company, alleges that Merkin should have known from...

Nevada Deals 20 Years to Thieving Chinese Bankers

Embezzlers tried to launder stolen $500M through Vegas casinos

(Newser) - Two managers who scammed the Bank of China for nearly $500 million and fled to the US have been sentenced to more than 20 years each by a Nevada court, the BBC reports. The men's wives—who helped them launder the cash through Las Vegas casinos—were given 8-year sentences....

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