fraud

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Financial Fraud Investigations Overwhelm FBI

Enron-style crisis in mortgage, bailout cases looms

(Newser) - The mortgage crisis and the billions of bailout dollars finding their way into circulation have spawned a surge in fraud cases that already is straining federal law enforcement resources, reports the Los Angeles Times. The FBI is stretched to the limit by 2,300 current investigations—but just 38 are...

Madoff Scam Zaps Key Science Funds
Madoff Scam Zaps Key Science Funds
Feb 12, 2009 2:23 AM CST

Madoff Scam Zaps Key Science Funds

Medical research set back years as bilked charities slash aid

(Newser) - Bernard Madoff's alleged Ponzi scheme is sending shockwaves deep into the worlds of medicine and science as scammed charitable foundations yank funding for key research projects, reports the Wall Street Journal. Experts believe the number of people affected by the scam's impact on health care could run into the millions....

Madoff's Wife Withdrew $15.5M Days Before Arrest

Deadline for criminal indictment extended 30 days

(Newser) - Ruth Madoff withdrew $10 million from a Madoff-related brokerage firm the day before her husband was arrested, according to a complaint filed by Massachusetts’ secretary of state, the Wall Street Journal reports. She also withdrew $5.5 million a few weeks earlier, according to documents from Cohmad Securities, which Bernie...

Facebook 'Friend' Emergency Latest Online Scam

Cybercriminals hijack Facebook accounts to pose as friends in crisis

(Newser) - Fraudsters posing as friends who need emergency cash are scamming Facebook users out of thousands of dollars, CNN reports. Criminals filch Facebook identities, then bombard their friends with desperate-sounding messages pleading for money. The scammers often claim to have been robbed in a foreign country and beg the friend to...

See Full List of Madoff Victims (Sandy Koufax, Too)

(Newser) - Baseball legend Sandy Koufax has joined the list of Bernie Madoff's victims, the New York Post reports. And the Dodger great isn't even the only pitcher: former Met Tim Teuful is an unwelcome teammate. A complete list of victims in the $50 billion Ponzi scheme was made public today after...

Madoff Whistleblower Slams SEC's 'Financial Illiteracy'

(Newser) - The fraud investigator who tried for a decade to convince the SEC to investigate Bernie Madoff will deride the board's "financial illiteracy" before a Congressional panel today, according to prepared testimony obtained by the Wall Street Journal. Whistleblower Harry Markopolos will also testify that investigating Madoff "posed great...

Madoff Grandkids May Change Name
Madoff Grandkids May Change Name 
Feb 2, 2009 8:57 AM CST

Madoff Grandkids May Change Name

It's not easy being related to a Ponzi schemer

(Newser) - What to do if you’re the innocent grandchild of a Ponzi schemer, feeling the public backlash at your ritzy uptown prep school? Change your name—at least, that’s what the family of Bernie Madoff is considering for his grandkids, the New York Post reports. Good luck, little Madoffs—...

Cache of Madoff Evidence Found in Warehouse

Bernie 'sick' of house arrest in $7M Park Ave. apartment: source

(Newser) - Investigators are going over millions of documents found in a Queens warehouse that may shed light on Bernard Madoff’s alleged Ponzi scheme, the New York Daily News reports. The warehouse was used to store records from Madoff Investment Securities, spanning the firm’s decades-long history.

Phony Ad Clicks at Record High
 Phony Ad Clicks at Record High 
Jan 28, 2009 4:07 PM CST

Phony Ad Clicks at Record High

Click fraud rate climbs to 17.1% in fourth quarter of 2008

(Newser) - Fraudulent attempts to deceive web advertisers into paying for phony clicks reached an all-time high in the last quarter of 2008, CNET reports. The rate of phony to genuine clicks climbed to 17.1% in the fourth quarter, increasing 1.1% from the third quarter and 0.5% from the...

Guess Who Also Cheats at Golf
 Guess Who Also Cheats at Golf 
Jan 27, 2009 11:37 AM CST

Guess Who Also Cheats at Golf

(Newser) - Bernie Madoff’s golf buddies knew something was up. No, not the whole global Ponzi scheme thing, which many would lose fortunes in. But something did seem fishy about his golf handicap. Madoff played off a 14 or 15, says one participant from a May tournament, but it should have...

New York 'Mini-Madoff' Busted
 New York 'Mini-Madoff' Busted 
Jan 27, 2009 6:09 AM CST

New York 'Mini-Madoff' Busted

Cops accuse New York financier of scamming investors out of millions

(Newser) - New York police have busted a financier accused of running a Ponzi scheme, Reuters reports. Nick Cosmo—sentenced to 21 months on swindling charges in 1999—may have bilked investors of up to $380 million through his firm Agape World, which claimed to make high-interest bridge loans, according to authorities....

Trust Fund Teens TP Madoff Mansion

Pranksters blast accused swindler for wiping out future fortunes

(Newser) - Pranksters whose future fortunes were battered by accused swindler Bernard Madofff festooned his tony Palm Beach digs with toilet paper over the weekend, reports the Palm Beach Post. Teenage boys called the newspaper to claim responsibility for the guerrilla tactic and blasted Madoff for wiping out their trust funds. The...

Credit Card Processor Bares Massive Hacker Breach

Sophisticated hackers nab vast amounts credit card data

(Newser) - A credit card payment processor has disclosed a data breach that experts believe could be the biggest ever and may be putting millions of consumers at risk of ripoffs, the Washington Post reports. Heartland Payment Systems, which handles 100 million transactions from 250,000 businesses every month, believes malicious software...

Ruth Madoff: Accomplice or Another Victim?

Both possibilities hard to believe, friends say of inseparable couple

(Newser) - Bernard Madoff and his wife, Ruth, have been married for nearly 50 years and are practically inseparable. They worked together, and the outgoing blonde with the all-American look attracted friends to his hedge fund, the New York Times reports. So did she know or didn't she? "It’s hard...

NY Investigates Madoff Chum in Charity Losses

Nonprofits say Merkin invested millions without their knowledge

(Newser) - New York investigators widened their inquiry into Bernie Madoff's Ponzi scheme yesterday, as claims emerged that a middleman may have defrauded charities of millions of dollars. Money manager Ezra Merkin allegedly invested the money of 15 nonprofits in Madoff funds without their knowledge, reports the New York Daily News. New...

Scamsters Cash In on Foreclosure Crisis

Phony rescuers collect big upfront fees from desperate homeowners

(Newser) - A new breed of crook is getting rich preying on homeowners desperate to fend off foreclosure, the New York Times reports. Scamsters set themselves up as "foreclosure rescue companies,” collect big upfront fees for the promise to modify loans, then do little or nothing to help. Some people...

Death Hoax Pilot Captured After Apparent Suicide Try

Accused swindler found in Florida campground with wrist slit

(Newser) - A businessman believed to have faked his own death by jumping out of a plane has been captured in Florida, the Northwest Florida Daily News reports. Law enforcement sources say Marcus Schrenker was found at a campground, alive but with his wrists slit. The fugitive had emailed a friend Monday...

Broker Tried to Fake Plane Death: Cops

Pilot facing fraud charges abandoned plane in mid-air

(Newser) - An Indiana businessman being investigated for fraud apparently tried to fake his death in a plane crash, the Indianapolis Star reports. Authorities believe businessman Mark Schrenker, an accomplished stunt pilot, faked a distress call from the small plane he was piloting saying that the windshield had imploded and he was...

Madoff Stays Free on Bail
 Madoff Stays Free on Bail 
Jan 12, 2009 11:37 AM CST

Madoff Stays Free on Bail

Judge doesn't revoke bail

(Newser) - A New York judge ruled today that Bernard Madoff may remain free on bail, rejecting a bid by prosecutors to send the disgraced investor to jail. Madoff mailed more than $1 million in jewelry and heirlooms to family and friends over the holidays. Prosecutors said the gifts were grounds to...

Court Reinstates Corruption Case Against Zuma

Ahead of vote, would-be S. African prez faces 16 counts of fraud

(Newser) - Jacob Zuma, the leader of the African National Congress and the likely next president of South Africa, once again faces corruption charges after the country's top appeals court reinstated 16 counts of fraud, money laundering, and tax evasion today. The court reversed a bombshell ruling from last September that threw...

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