Bankrupt Banker

Amit Mathur, founder and former president of Entrust Capital Management of Worcester, was convicted last May

Amit Mathur, founder and former president of Entrust Capital Management of Worcester, was convicted last May

Amit Mathur, founder and former president of Entrust Capital Management of Worcester, was convicted last May. He wants a new trial and is ch...

Nancy Jean Siegel, 61, was convicted in March of second-degree murder, witness tampering, theft of government benefits, identity theft

Nancy Jean Siegel, 61, was convicted in March of second-degree murder, witness tampering, theft of government benefits, identity theft and other charges of fraud, according to a statement from U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, Rod Rosenstein. U.S. District Judge Andre M. Davis sentenced Siegel to 400 months in prison Thursday, according to Rosenstein. Thomas Saunders, Siegel's attorney declined to comment on the sentence.Siegel was convicted of killing Jasper Frederick Watkins, a Reisterstown man who prosecutors said was nearly 30 years older than Siegel and who moved into her Ellicott City home sometime after the two met and began a relationship in 1994.Within months of meeting Watkins, Siegel began using his bank and credit accounts, making extensive charges for clothing, jewelry and larger purchases, according to Rosenstein. She also obtained credit using Watkins personal information. By August 1995, Siegel had racked up tens of thousands of dollars of credit card debt and had an outstanding loan for a BMW for more than $40,000, according to Rosenstein.Siegel then persauded Watkins to obtain a $44,000 mortgage on his house in Reisterstown to pay off the balance on 13 credit cards, according to prosecutors. She later persuaded Watkins to take out another $20,000 mortgage, promising to marry him and use the money to buy a condo for them to live in, prosecutors said.She never bought the condo and used the money for her own expenses, according to Rosenstein. Siegel sold Watkins' house in April 1996 and began taking steps to have him wrongfully committed for psychiatric care, while pawning his personal assets, according to Rosenstein. Autopsy reports indicate that Watkins died sometime around May 13, 1996, and found blunt force trauma to the back of his head and toxic levels of a sedative in his body, according to Rosenstein. Watkins' body was found near trash at an access point to the Appalachian Trail in Virginia.For seven years after Watkins' death, Siegel diverted Watkins' Social Security and retirement annuity payments for her own use, according to Rosenstein.Siegel is being held by federal authorities, who declined to disclose her location.

Nancy Jean Siegel, 61, was convicted in March of second-degree murder, witness tampering, theft of government benefits, identity theft

Nancy Jean Siegel, 61, was convicted in March of second-degree murder, witness tampering, theft of government benefits, identity theft and o...

Rafeal Heard, 34, of Cleveland, is charged with bank fraud and failing to appear in federal court

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNdHFsoURobWhNqNYRhvEiBRqC6pGNpS65-IrTFbFhkEiUhesfbZ3nwA8bUckO6pv9T5IIDat7R2TfRHCJZeJfC5NHjFZRmPH7Id_GMBZY2eOm0s7yRiKUd2sn_LG3yF4JD6rAGo9By_1I/s1600-h/small_Rafeal%2520Heard.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5329689703738768114" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNdHFsoURobWhNqNYRhvEiBRqC6pGNpS65-IrTFbFhkEiUhesfbZ3nwA8bUckO6pv9T5IIDat7R2TfRHCJZeJfC5NHjFZRmPH7Id_GMBZY2eOm0s7yRiKUd2sn_LG3yF4JD6rAGo9By_1I/s400/small_Rafeal%2520Heard.jpg" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 150px; height: 231px;" /></a> Rafeal Heard, 34, of Cleveland, is charged with bank fraud and failing to appear in federal court. U.S. postal inspectors say Heard gets others to open checking accounts he uses to deposit checks he makes. Heard's criminal history includes aggravated trafficking in cocaine, drug possession, theft, forgery, tampering with records, having guns, falsifying records and passing bad checks.He is 6 feet 1 and 170 pounds. He has contacts throughout Cleveland's East Side and frequented the East 114th Street and Hopkins Avenue area.

Rafeal Heard, 34, of Cleveland, is charged with bank fraud and failing to appear in federal court

Rafeal Heard, 34, of Cleveland, is charged with bank fraud and failing to appear in federal court. U.S. postal inspectors say Heard gets oth...

Fairfield Greenwich Group, the hedge fund that steered $7 billion to Bernard Madoff, faces new claims of fraud by investors

Fairfield Greenwich Group, the hedge fund that steered $7 billion to Bernard Madoff, faces new claims of fraud by investors who previously alleged negligence against co-founders Walter Noel, Jeffrey Tucker and Andres Piedrahita. The class-action suit, first filed in January in Manhattan federal court, was amended April 24 to include claims that the three co-founders and the firm acted so recklessly in placing client money with Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC that their actions constituted fraud. The amended complaint relies on documents filed by Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth William Galvin, who filed an administrative complaint against Fairfield Greenwich and its Sentry Funds April 1, and other investigation by the plaintiffs. The investors’ complaint, which seeks damages for their losses, claims that Fairfield Greenwich and its executives had no basis to tell investors that their historical profits were real, that Madoff’s “split-strike conversion strategy” was legitimate, or that the firm conducted adequate due diligence. “The evidence that has come to light shows that certain of the Fairfield defendants had acted so recklessly in promoting the Fairfield Sentry Funds that they’re liable for fraud,” said Stuart Singer, of Boies, Schiller & Flexner LLP, one of the lead lawyers in the case. Had Fairfield Greenwich investigated Madoff, the “fraud would have been exposed many years ago,” he said. Madoff, 70, pleaded guilty March 12 to fraud by using money from new investors to pay off old ones in the largest Ponzi scheme in U.S. history. Before his Dec. 11 arrest, he had told his thousands of clients that they had about $65 billion in accounts with him, prosecutors said. Feeder funds like Fairfield Greenwich gathered investor money in their own names and sent it to Madoff. Fairfield Greenwich said the claim that it failed to exercise due diligence on behalf of investors is “false and misleading,” according to the company’s April 1 statement in response to the Massachusetts lawsuit. Fairfield “conducted vigorous and robust monitoring on an ongoing basis of the Madoff investments,” the statement said. “This monitoring was consistent with the representations made to investors in the Sentry funds.” “These are absolutely meritless allegations against Mr. Tucker and Fairfield Greenwich,” his lawyer, Marc Kasowitz, said in an interview today. “Mr. Tucker and Fairfield Greenwich were as much the victims of Madoff’s fraud as the literally thousands of other victims.” The suit names Madoff, Fairfield Greenwich, and directors of Fairfield funds. Also sued were Citco Bank Nederland NV, a custodian; Citco Fund Services (Europe), a transfer agent; and fund administrator GlobeOp Financial Services SA. Noel’s lawyer, Glenn Kurtz, and Citco spokesman Jonathan Gasthalter declined to comment. A spokeswoman for GlobeOp who wouldn’t provide her name also refused to comment. Calls to Fairfield Greenwich’s lawyer, Peter Kazanoff, and Piedrahita’s lawyer, Andrew Levander, weren’t immediately returned. Among the approximately 30 named plaintiffs in the class action case are Pasha and Julia Anwar, an Illinois couple who claim Fairfield advisers ignored red flags about Madoff, and Pacific West Health Medical Center Inc. The suit seeks to represent more than 100 investors. <blockquote>The 112-page complaint, which also contains breach-of-duty and gross negligence claims, says the investors lost their money as a “direct” result of the defendants’ failure to fulfill their obligations. It seeks the recovery of hundreds of millions of dollars in fees paid to the defendants. </blockquote>“When members of the plaintiff class raised questions about Madoff, the Fairfield defendants repeatedly -- and falsely -- assured them that they had nothing to worry about,” the complaint said. In reality, “Madoff exercised total dominance and control over the monies invested as soon as he received them from the Fairfield defendants, without any oversight, advice or contest from them.” Fairfield Greenwich has also been sued by the town of Fairfield, Connecticut’s pension fund and its 1,500 members. Separate suits are pending against other Madoff feeder funds, including Gabriel Capital LP and Cohmad Securities Group, which was part-owned by Madoff.

Fairfield Greenwich Group, the hedge fund that steered $7 billion to Bernard Madoff, faces new claims of fraud by investors

Fairfield Greenwich Group, the hedge fund that steered $7 billion to Bernard Madoff, faces new claims of fraud by investors who previously a...

Metro Dream Homes was founded by Andrew Hamilton Williams Jr.

Metro Dream Homes was founded by Andrew Hamilton Williams Jr., who used some of the $50,000 minimum payments provided by home owners to cover the losses of an automated-teller-machine scheme he was ordered to shut down in 2001, according to the indictment unsealed Monday.Investors in Metro Dream Homes who forked over the $50,000 were told the company would pay off the their mortgages, court documents said. Instead, the cash was used to pay off the mortgages of the original investors, and often just landed in the pockets of Williams and the three other top company officials charged, according to the indictment.The Dream Homes Program was advertised at seminars in luxury hotels in the District, Maryland and Beverly Hills, Calif., the indictment said. Some of the original investors whose mortgages were actually being paid by later investors, would tout the program’s success during the seminars. Investors were encouraged to invest $150,000 or more through incentives offering cash rewards and positions on Metro Dream Homes’ board of directors. The company claimed the investment dollars would be spent on promoting the company’s three side businesses: the placing of ATM’s in high-traffic areas, placing in existing businesses electronic kiosks selling telephone cards, and the placing of flat screen televisions showing video advertisements in various businesses, prosecutors allege.None of those businesses ever turned a profit, according to the indictment. Instead, much of the cash was spent on the 10 chauffeurs hired to cart around company employees in high-end cars including several Mercedes-Benzes, Cadillacs, Lincolns and Land Rovers. They also sent select employees to the 2007 NBA All-Star Game and spent $60,000 sending employees to the 2007 Super Bowl, prosecutors contend.No lawyers for the company or persons indicted were listed in court records.federal grand jury has indicted four defendants, and an information has been filed against a fifth defendant, for their participation in a massive mortgage fraud scheme that allegedly promised to pay off homeowners' mortgages on their "Dream Homes," but left them to fend for themselves, Assistant Attorney General of the Criminal Division Lanny A. Breuer and U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein announced today. The indictment was returned on April 22, 2009, and unsealed today. "The Criminal Division and the U.S. Attorneys' Offices are jointly committed to redoubling our efforts to uncover and prosecute fraud and abuse in all facets of the housing market - a market upon which so many American families have pinned their hopes and their futures for so many years," said Assistant Attorney General of the Criminal Division Lanny A. Breuer. "I want to assure the American public that we will not rest until the tide of this criminal activity is turned.""The indictment alleges that the defendants used slick marketing to conceal empty promises," said U.S. Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein. "They convinced many victims to invest at least $50,000 by refinancing their existing homes or buying new homes at inflated prices, while claiming that Metro Dream Homes would repay the mortgages with revenue from profitable businesses. The indictment alleges that there was no revenue to pay the mortgage payments. Instead, the conspirators used some of the investors' money to repay earlier investors in the Ponzi scheme and spent the remainder on themselves.""The effects of this wide-ranging mortgage fraud scheme are particularly disturbing within the backdrop of today's economic environment. With our federal, state and local partners working on 18 mortgage fraud task forces and 47 mortgage fraud working groups across the country, the FBI is committed to combating mortgage fraud and other financial crimes nationwide to protect the American homeowner and the national economy," said Executive Assistant Director Thomas J. Harrington, FBI Criminal, Cyber, Response, and Services Branch."IRS Criminal Investigation takes allegations of mortgage fraud seriously," said "Eileen Mayer, Chief, IRS Criminal Investigation. "These types of crimes drive home owners into foreclosure, erode the integrity of our tax system and threaten the financial health of our communities." According to the indictment, from 2005 to 2007 the defendants allegedly used corporate names such as "Metropolitan Grapevine LLC," "Metro Dream Homes," "POS Dream Homes," and "POS DH LLC" (collectively, MDH) to target homeowners and home purchasers to participate in a purported mortgage payment program called the "Dream Homes Program." To participate, an investor had to provide a minimum of $50,000 for each home enrolled in the program, in addition to an "administrative fee" of up to $5,000. In exchange, the program promised to make the homeowner's future monthly mortgage payments, and pay off the homeowner's mortgage within five to seven years. Thereafter, the homeowner and MDH would own an equal interest in the home. The indictment alleges that Andrew Hamilton Williams, Jr., 58, of Hollywood, Fla., was the founder and owner of MDH; Michael Anthony Hickson, 46, of Commack, N.Y., was the chief financial officer; Isaac Jerome Smith, 46, of Spotsylvania, Va., was the president; and Alvita Karen Gunn, 31, of Hanover, Md., was the vice president of operations. The information alleges that Carole Nelson, age 50, of Washington, D.C., was the chief financial officer of POS Dream Homes. The indictment further alleges that Dream Homes Program representatives explained to investors that the homeowners' initial payments would be used to fund investments in automated teller machines (ATMs), flat-screen televisions that would show paid business advertisements, and "Touch-N-Buy" electronic kiosks that sold telephone calling cards and other items. To give the Dream Homes Program a veneer of legitimacy and financial success, the defendants marketed the program through live presentations at luxury hotels in Maryland, Washington, D.C., and Beverly Hills, Calif., among other locations. The defendants allegedly told some of the investors that they should not worry about the price of the homes or monthly mortgage payments because MDH would make mortgage payments on their behalf.The indictment alleges that the defendants failed to advise investors that: the ATMs, flat-screen televisions and kiosks never generated any meaningful revenue; the defendants used the funds from later investors to pay the mortgages of earlier investors; and MDH had not filed any federal income tax returns throughout its existence. The defendants also allegedly failed to advise investors that their investments were being used for the personal enrichment of select MDH employees, including the defendants, to: pay salaries of up to $200,000 a year as well as their mortgages; employ a staff of 10 chauffeurs and maintain a fleet of luxury cars; and travel to and attend the 2007 National Basketball Association All-Star game and the 2007 National Football League Super Bowl, staying in luxury accommodations in both instances. Nor were investors told that investor funds were allegedly used to: pay off investors in a prior failed ATM investment venture that Williams had founded called Bankcard Group; make multiple donations of up to $50,000 each to charitable organizations to allegedly give MDH the appearance of being financially successful; and fund investments in third-party businesses that had not been disclosed to investors.On Aug. 15, 2007, the Maryland Securities Commissioner issued a cease-and-desist order to Williams, MDH and other related companies directing them to immediately cease the offering and sale of unregistered securities in connection with their promotion of the Dream Homes Program. However, the defendants thereafter allegedly called additional meetings in which they made additional misrepresentations about the financial success of MDH's operations. On Sept. 4, 2007, the defendants filed a legal challenge in federal court in Maryland to the cease-and-desist order. The indictment alleges that at a hearing on Sept. 12, 2007, Hickson testified that the financial success of the Dream Homes Program did not rely upon new investor funds, when in fact Hickson knew that the sole source of meaningful revenue for MDH was new investor funds.As a result of the scheme, more than 1,000 investors in the Dream Homes Program invested approximately $70 million. When the defendants stopped making the mortgage payments, the homeowners were left to attempt to make the mortgage payments MDH had promised to make in full.The four indicted defendants face a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for the fraud conspiracy; 20 years in prison on each of the 15 counts of wire fraud; and 20 years in prison for conspiracy to commit money laundering. Hickson also faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison for making false statements. Smith also faces a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison for bank fraud arising out of his alleged misrepresentation of his income in order to obtain a bank loan to purchase a new Bentley automobile. Nelson was charged by information with money laundering, which carries a maximum penalty of ten years in prison. The indictment seeks forfeiture of the fraud proceeds, including $70 million.An indictment is not a finding of guilt. An individual charged by indictment is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty at some later criminal proceeding.This prosecution is being brought jointly by the Maryland and Washington, D.C. Mortgage Fraud Task Forces, which are comprised of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies in Maryland, Washington, D.C. and Northern Virginia. The Task Forces were formed to promote the early detection, identification, prevention and prosecution of various kinds of mortgage fraud schemes. This case, as well as other cases brought by members of the Task Forces, demonstrates the commitment of law enforcement agencies to protect consumers from fraud and help to ensure the integrity of the mortgage market and other credit markets. Information about mortgage fraud prosecutions is available on the internet at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/md/Mortgage-Fraud/index.html. Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer and U.S. Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein praised the FBI, IRS - CI, the Maryland Attorney General's Office, Securities Division and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Office of Inspector General for their investigative work; and thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys for the District of Maryland Jonathan C. Su and Bryan E. Foreman, who are prosecuting the case.

Metro Dream Homes was founded by Andrew Hamilton Williams Jr.

Metro Dream Homes was founded by Andrew Hamilton Williams Jr., who used some of the $50,000 minimum payments provided by home owners to cove...

Ashley Wynn, 28, of Virginia Beach, was sentenced today following her pleading guilty to conspiring to commit credit union fraud

Ashley Wynn, 28, of Virginia Beach, was sentenced today following her pleading guilty to conspiring to commit credit union fraud in federal court in January, the news release said. former finance manager of a used car dealership was sentenced to serve 33 months in prison for defrauding the Navy Federal Credit Union, a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s office for the Eastern District of Virginia said.According to court documents, Wynn was working as the finance manager for the Car Store, a now defunct used-car dealership that operated in Virginia Beach. As its finance manager, Wynn regularly obtained car loans for prospective car buyers from Navy Federal by fraudulent means, the news release said. Specifically, Wynn would assist buyers with poor credit in obtaining financing by preparing false loan applications and documents, concerning a buyer’s income, expenses, employment and living arrangements, and then forwarding the applications to Navy Federal.From August 2007 through May 2008, the credit union made 61 car loans totaling more than $1.1 million that were fraudulently obtained through the Car Store. Navy Federal Credit Union and several insurance companies have suffered losses on these loans totaling more than $500,000, the news release said.

Ashley Wynn, 28, of Virginia Beach, was sentenced today following her pleading guilty to conspiring to commit credit union fraud

Ashley Wynn, 28, of Virginia Beach, was sentenced today following her pleading guilty to conspiring to commit credit union fraud in federal ...

Financier Danny Pang defrauded investors of hundreds of millions of dollars

Financier Danny Pang defrauded investors of hundreds of millions of dollars,obtained a temporary order freezing his assets.As part of the SEC's civil lawsuit filed in federal court in Los Angeles, U.S. District Judge Philip Gutierrez froze the assets of Mr. Pang and the Irvine, Calif., businesses he ran, Private Equity Management Group Inc. and Private Equity Management Group LLC. The judge also appointed a receiver, Robert P. Mosier, to safeguard the existing assets. SEC complaint against Pang SEC statement on Pang From the Archive Highflying Financier Faces Questions 04/15/09Pang Firm Left Some Big Funds Unaudited 04/16/09China Business Leader Linked to Pang 04/17/09Pang Steps Aside as Head of Firm 04/17/09Taiwan Banks Probe PEMGroup Notes 04/23/09The judge ordered Mr. Pang to return money sent overseas and to surrender his passport. The investigation is continuing.Mr. Pang's investment practices came to light in a page-one article earlier this month in The Wall Street Journal. Mr. Pang stepped aside temporarily as chairman and CEO of PEMGroup shortly after the article appeared.The company hired law firm Gibson Dunn & Crutcher to perform an independent investigation. A company spokesman had no immediate comment on the SEC allegations. Mr. Pang, 42 years old, traveled to China two weeks ago for a religious pilgrimage, according to his spokesman.David Schindler, an attorney for Mr. Pang, said his client expects to be fully vindicated. He said Mr. Pang voluntarily returned to the U.S. more than a week ago to cooperate with PEMGroup's internal probe and is committed to saving the company.PEMGroup says it manages $4 billion, but the amount raised in Taiwan, where most of its investors were, was likely no more than $1 billion, according to people close to the matter. Ming-Daw Chang, director of the banking bureau under Taiwan's Financial Supervisory Commission, said the SEC move "could have a major impact" in Taiwan. The SEC also accused Mr. Pang of lying about his past, saying PEMGroup falsely represented him as a former merger adviser at Morgan Stanley and said he held an M.B.A. degree from University of California, Irvine. Mr. Pang never worked at Morgan Stanley, nor did he attend or obtain any degrees from UC Irvine, the SEC said. The SEC alleged Mr. Pang's fraud began at least in 2003 when he raised hundreds of millions of dollars from investors, mostly in Taiwan. Mr. Pang sold investors securities and told them he would earn enough profit to pay them returns through purchasing life-insurance policies at a discount, the SEC said. In truth, the SEC alleged, the life-insurance policies didn't generate enough profit to cover the cost of the premiums or meet the returns he promised to investors. PEMGroup instead paid investors from new money that was supposed to be invested in time-shares, the SEC said.In one instance, PEMGroup presented investors with a forged $108 million insurance policy to support its claim that one investment was entirely covered by insurance, the SEC said. The SEC alleged the insurance policy was for approximately $31 million. When asked by investors to view the policy, the SEC said, Mr. Pang had it altered to increase the amount of the policy. Investors also were shown the "bogus insurance policy" by PEMGroup in order to win their business, it said.Rosalind Tyson, director of the SEC's Los Angeles office, said, "Pang's alleged use of phony credentials and false insurance coverage to guarantee his investments underscores how critical it is for investors to exercise due diligence."

Financier Danny Pang defrauded investors of hundreds of millions of dollars

Financier Danny Pang defrauded investors of hundreds of millions of dollars,obtained a temporary order freezing his assets.As part of the SE...

Marc Dreier will enter the plea to securities fraud, wire fraud and money laundering charges

Marc Dreier will enter the plea to securities fraud, wire fraud and money laundering charges, attorney Gerald Shargel told U.S. District Judge Jed S. Rakoff. Manhattan lawyer accused in a $700 million fraud will plead guilty next month to all of the charges he faces, his attorney told a judge Monday.Dreier, 58, will enter the plea on May 11 without a plea deal with the government, meaning he could face a maximum of 30 years to life in prison. "I wasn't expecting any deal," Shargel said. He said Dreier wanted to "demonstrate his acceptance of responsibility and his profound remorse." Until December, Dreier had led a law firm, Dreier LLP, with 250 attorneys and celebrity clients. He was arrested after hedge funds complained he was stealing from them. Dreier has remained under house arrest and was not in court Monday. He was first arrested on impersonation charges in Canada in early December before he flew to New York City, where U.S. authorities arrested him at the airport. A court-appointed receiver, Mark Pomerantz, has said Dreier received $670 million between 2004 and 2008 from the sale of fictitious securities. Dreier was accused of spending much of it on a lavish lifestyle that included millions of dollars in artwork, beachfront homes on both coasts and the yacht, "Lady Seascape." The receiver has said Dreier's law firm, despite appearances of profitability including rapid growth and new construction, was actually losing enormous amounts of money. Among assets described in court papers by the receiver was an extensive fine art collection worth about $39 million, a $10 million Manhattan apartment and three properties in the Hamptons and an $18.5 million yacht, "Lady Seascape." Prosecutors say $400 million of the $700 million involved in the fraud was missing, but Pomerantz has said he has since identified $100 million in assets. That leaves $300 million missin

Marc Dreier will enter the plea to securities fraud, wire fraud and money laundering charges

Marc Dreier will enter the plea to securities fraud, wire fraud and money laundering charges, attorney Gerald Shargel told U.S. District Jud...

Yang Zhen Xing and his girlfriend Zhou Xi, both 25, had 233,690 pounds pass through their bank accounts but there was no sign of the cash

Yang Zhen Xing and his girlfriend Zhou Xi, both 25, had 233,690 pounds pass through their bank accounts but there was no sign of the cash when their bodies were found, Newcastle Crown Court heard. Cao Guang Hui, 30, denies murdering the couple after robbing them, perhaps with others, last August. Zhou, known as Cici, and Yang, also called Kevin, had mobile phones and a laptop computer taken from their ground floor flat. The level of violence used was not even remotely necessary to take those items, according to prosecution lawyer Robert Smith. The court heard that Yang made a living from selling false educational certificates and from his involvement in a fraudulent Internet betting scam.His declared annual income was just 3,000 pounds while his girlfriend earned 14,000 pounds a year as a waitress, but police found hundreds of thousands of pounds passed through their bank accounts.Yet when officers searched the murder scene, they found just 10 pounds. It was unclear whether cash was stolen on the day, the court heard.Zhou came to Britain as a student in June 2005, and her boyfriend arrived in 2003 to study English and accounting in Cardiff, Wales. They met in Newcastle. Zhou was found face down on a bed in their flat with her wrists bound with tape and towelling stuffed into her mouth that caused her to suffocate. She was also hit over the head with a heavy weapon, possibly a hammer.Yang was found in the other bedroom, having been hit with a hammer in the face and head. His throat was slashed despite already being unconscious.Smith said the wound may have been to accelerate Yang's death, and the head injuries inflicted on Cici were done to ensure she died also. After the murders, Cao changed his clothes and stole three mobile phones and a laptop, the court heard. The phones were found dumped nearby and when examined, revealed contact between him and the couple.The court heard Cao, who came to Britain in 2001 to study English and followed the trial with the help of a translator, pretended to want to sub-let a room in their flat.Cao was arrested and Yang's blood was found on his glasses. More blood was found in his watch, the jury heard. The case continues.

Yang Zhen Xing and his girlfriend Zhou Xi, both 25, had 233,690 pounds pass through their bank accounts but there was no sign of the cash

Yang Zhen Xing and his girlfriend Zhou Xi, both 25, had 233,690 pounds pass through their bank accounts but there was no sign of the cash wh...

Angus Weaver, 52, teamed up with 83-year-old Dennis Hancox to produce bogus £20 notes and euros, complete with embossed strips and holograms

Angus Weaver, 52, teamed up with 83-year-old Dennis Hancox to produce bogus £20 notes and euros, complete with embossed strips and holograms, in an operation that began in Glasgow.Weaver's gang had circulated millions in fake euros with identical serial numbers before surveillance officers from the Serious Organised Crime Agency swooped on the 10 men in October 2007, Snaresbrook Crown Court heard.The operation had begun in Glasgow a year earlier, using equipment at Print Link, in St George's Road, Kelvingrove. The men worked with Thomas McAnea, 58, a Glaswegian printer and veteran forger known as "Hologram Tam", who was jailed in 2007.Sophisticated software was used to scan images of the notes, remove the silver strip and hologram, and emboss them back onto fake notes.After a meeting at Claridge's Hotel in London, production was moved from Scotland to the English capital. A £12,500 machine was installed in Hancox's house in Chiswick, where the forged notes could be foiled and finished.Officers watched as the gang regularly met up in the South Acton Working Men's Club. Yesterday Judge William Kennedy jailed Weaver, of Bethnal Green, for 52 months. He had admitted three counterfeiting charges. The judge said the sentence would have been more had he not pleaded guilty.At an earlier hearing, Hancox was given a nine-month jail term, suspended for a year, and five other men were sentenced for their parts in the operation.James Watson, 58, of Hoddam Avenue, Castlemilk, Glasgow, will be sentenced on Friday. He has admitted two counterfeiting charges.

Angus Weaver, 52, teamed up with 83-year-old Dennis Hancox to produce bogus £20 notes and euros, complete with embossed strips and holograms

Angus Weaver, 52, teamed up with 83-year-old Dennis Hancox to produce bogus £20 notes and euros, complete with embossed strips and holograms...

2,800 organised criminal gangs, British law enforcement is ill-equipped to deal with the threat that they pose.

2,800 organised criminal gangs, British law enforcement is ill-equipped to deal with the threat that they pose. an official report revealing the finding by intelligence analysts. It was completed six months ago but marked “restricted” and circulated only to ministers and police chiefs. After a freedom of information request, it was made available this month in edited form. Issued by HM Inspectorate of Constabulary, it is the first time that officials have disclosed the true scale of the gangland threat and made the frank admission that they are struggling to cope with it. The report states: “The UK law enforcement community now knows more about organised criminality than ever before. Worryingly, though, this increased knowledge has highlighted the need for a more effective response by the police and other agencies. The reach of organised criminality is more extensive than previously acknowledged . . . from local teams of criminals engaged in drug dealing and acquisitive crime through to international gangs committing acts of large-scale importation, kidnap, fraud and corruption.” The report, Getting Organised, predicts that the threat from organised crime will increase, with syndicates using the London 2012 Olympics to exploit opportunities for sex trafficking and illegal immigration. About 60 per cent of gangs are involved in drug dealing, two thirds engage in a range of criminal activities and all are characterised by an “ever-present willingness to use extreme violence to secure and protect profits”. The report contrasts the nationwide spread of organised crime — from the inner cities to the shires — with the disjointed reaction of police and the Serious Organised Crime Agency (Soca). Britain’s response is described as “blighted” by a lack of direction, inadequate surveillance and under-investment in intelligence, analysis and enforcement. Passages edited out before publication are understood to include critical assessments of the ability of some police forces to deal with organised crime. The report does state: “The capability of individual forces is extremely variable . . . there is much work to be done.” There is no direct criticism of Soca, launched in 2006, but the findings add up to a scathing verdict on its failure to satisfy live up to its billing as Britain’s FBI. The biggest concentrations of crime syndicates are in London and the North West, with criminals there controlling satellite gangs elsewhere in the country. The scale of the threat is better understood but there is no firm grasp of how the gangs operate and interact. The law enforcement approach is also found to lack cohesion and co-ordination. The report says: “A number of groups and bodies are competing to set directions and priorities for the service, reporting to different Home Office directorates and, in the case of HM Revenue and Customs, a different ministry.” Without a national approach to the organised crime threat, the policing response would be “reactive, localised and ultimately ineffective”. The model of national leadership and collaboration pioneered in counter-terrorism should be copied to deal with organised crime, the report says. Vernon Coaker, the Home Office minister, said that he had earmarked £3 million for the areas facing the worst organised crime threat after reading the report. “I am determined to protect the public from serious organised crime. We have also brought together law enforcement partners through the Organised Crime Partnership Board to drive improvements in this area. A cross-government ministerial group will ensure that good progress is made,” he said. A Soca spokesman said that the report was “a welcome contribution to the debate about how law enforcement can best tackle the complex and wideranging threats posed to the UK by organised crime”.

2,800 organised criminal gangs, British law enforcement is ill-equipped to deal with the threat that they pose.

2,800 organised criminal gangs, British law enforcement is ill-equipped to deal with the threat that they pose. an official report revealin...

Moscow police are searching for two men who attacked a car repair cashier and made off with a bag containing 2 million rubles ($59,608),

Moscow police are searching for two men who attacked a car repair cashier and made off with a bag containing 2 million rubles ($59,608), a p...

The Black Widow is being released from a Florida jail this weekend and will be deported to Canada.

The Black Widow is being released from a Florida jail this weekend and will be deported to Canada.In 2005, Melissa Ann Friedrich was sentenc...

Antonnette Haughton-Cardenas is accused of collecting $12 million from several residents in Fort district, Leith Hall, St Thomas

Antonnette Haughton-Cardenas was charged by the police in Yallahs, St Thomas, on Wednesday with two counts of fraudulent conversion. The law...