Bankrupt Banker

Reported incidents of mortgage fraud in the U.S. increased by nearly 50% in the first quarter of 2008

Reported incidents of mortgage fraud in the U.S. increased by nearly 50% in the first quarter of 2008 from a year ago, according to a new report released this week. The report is based on data submitted by Mortgage Asset Research Institute (MARISM) subscribers about loans that were originated in the first quarter of this year and have since been classified as fraudulent, and shows a whopping 42% increase in filings. At the local level, Florida continues to lead all states in reported mortgage fraud. In fact, according to the report, Florida accounted for 24% of all properties with material misrepresentation for loans originated during the first quarter of 2008, and the Miami MSA alone boasts 49% of all of the reports submitted for properties in the state.California ranked second in the first quarter of this year (with 52% of the properties with misrepresentation coming from the Los Angeles area), followed by a three-way tie for third place among Illinois, Maryland and Michigan.Major urban areas also score the highest in Illinois, Maryland and Michigan. Ninety-four percent of investigations in the state of Illinois are for properties in the Chicago MSA, while in Maryland, 25% of reports are in the Baltimore MSA. In addition, the Detroit MSA counts for 56% of all of the misrepresentation reported for Michigan.For all states, the most common type of fraud was in the “General Application Misrepresentation” category, followed closely by misrepresentations related to income and employment. In addition, multiple types of fraud types–such as identity theft and identity fraud–continue to appear in a significant percentage of loan transactions.In general, misrepresentation on the mortgage application trends high in each of the states. Income and employment misrepresentation on the mortgage application rank high in Florida, California, Illinois and Maryland. Florida and Maryland report higher income than employment misrepresentation, and California and Illinois report slightly higher employment than income misrepresentation. Michigan shows a high percentage of asset and debt misrepresentation on the mortgage application. Appraisal misrepresentation (including value inflation and incorrect use of comparables) is most prevalent in Michigan. Maryland has an abnormally high percentage — 69% — of tax return and financial statement misrepresentation. In its final analysis, this week’s report concludes the following: The first quarter data reveals that loan application misrepresentation continues to plague the industry. According to the FBI’s 2007 Mortgage Fraud Report, “the downward trend in the housing market provides an ideal climate for mortgage fraud perpetrators to employ a myriad of schemes suitable to a down market.” Simply stated, mortgage fraud will not disappear — in fact, it is expected to significantly grow, evolve and penetrate new areas within the industry. As the nation’s lenders redraw their credit practices, we see a continued need to highlight and eliminate loans that are not in good order at the point of origination, well before prefunding processors spend any effort to seek added verification or validation of the mortgage application information. If loan applications are not in good order when submitted, the loan data may likely be adjusted to fit the business practice expectation to meet the requirements for funding, which ultimately may result in funded loans that quickly go bad. To save itself from schemes both commonplace and new, the mortgage industry must continue to strengthen its attention to and practice of due diligence to ensure that transactions are in good order at the point of origination. This includes an analysis of the borrower’s identity, as well as the players involved in each of the real estate roles whether they are outsourced or work directly for the lender. As lenders pursue higher-quality loans for the market, the priority should be on identifying poor quality at the earliest possible point in the process — and at the lowest possible cost. In MARI’s view, the origination and prefunding processes offer the largest and least expensive opportunities to assure funding of higher quality loans. How a lender accepts or rejects a loan application at the front door is often all a criminal needs to see how much further he or she may push through the loan process. Pre-funding fraud detection solutions can help prevent the risk of application discrepancies, exposure to compromised identities and establishment of relationships with insiders who leverage someone’s good name to perpetrate fraud. If on the mortgage application general misrepresentation or income, appraiser or employer misrepresentation were checked adequately at origination and pre-funding, in this quarter’s examples, would there still be significant fraud to report…? Mortgage fraud inflicts damage to profits, reputations and consumer confidence. Today, it is wise to ensure you know the customers, employees and vendors involved in every loan transaction — doing this early in the process can result in overall protection from tainted pipelines and hidden threats to loan quality.

Reported incidents of mortgage fraud in the U.S. increased by nearly 50% in the first quarter of 2008

Reported incidents of mortgage fraud in the U.S. increased by nearly 50% in the first quarter of 2008 from a year ago, according to a new re...

Kwan Hee Yoo WANTED

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwZtI7-CChf5A4ICS3JVqraafi0Fh3DNuycN8oPFJJCfkx6xFGX-85vGt09pY4PyCaKJ6tXjswaNlQCNqTj2l0m_CB58JoDzGRxujYhtQdCS8JP-U3_neyTVT61OIiHzQ7p0fdGJ9gSJJ4/s1600-h/8909926_BG1.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5239651674560594034" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwZtI7-CChf5A4ICS3JVqraafi0Fh3DNuycN8oPFJJCfkx6xFGX-85vGt09pY4PyCaKJ6tXjswaNlQCNqTj2l0m_CB58JoDzGRxujYhtQdCS8JP-U3_neyTVT61OIiHzQ7p0fdGJ9gSJJ4/s400/8909926_BG1.jpg" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" /></a> Police need your help in finding a suspected felon. They have issued felony construction fraud warrants for 34 year-old Kwan Hee Yoo. York-Poquoson Sheriff's describe Yoo as an Asian male with black hair and brown eyes. They say is between 5'3 and 5'11, 130 to 180 pounds. Some distinctive features Yoo is said to have are scars on his lower right abdomen. His last known address is 6100 Mooretown Road in Williamsburg. Police say he may be driving a white pick-up truck with 'Kwan Yoo Flooring' on the side.

Kwan Hee Yoo WANTED

Police need your help in finding a suspected felon. They have issued felony construction fraud warrants for 34 year-old Kwan Hee Yoo. York-P...

Paul Hochfelder was awaiting arraignment in state Supreme Court on multiples counts of grand larceny, forgery and other charges. If convicted, he face

Paul Hochfelder was awaiting arraignment in state Supreme Court on multiples counts of grand larceny, forgery and other charges. If convicted, he faces up to 25 years in prison. Hochfelder's attorney, Paul Goldberger, questioned why prosecutors had his client arrested at his upper Manhattan apartment and didn't allow him to surrender even though "he's been cooperating with their office for the last four years." "The idea that they'd come down and lock him up is ridiculous," Goldberger said. He said his client, who was expected to be arraigned Thursday, has been in a treatment program for cocaine and alcohol abuse for two years. Hochfelder, 37, made his name as a founder and chairman of Max Capital Management Corp., once one of the city's largest landlords of commercial property, including the Helmsley building on Park Avenue. In 2003, Mayor Michael Bloomberg appointed him to the city's Latin Media and Entertainment Commission along with luminaries including actors Antonio Banderas and Jimmy Smits. Amid mounting financial troubles in recent years, Hochfelder came under investigation after borrowing millions of dollars from two banks, a business partner, his uncle, an in-law and a childhood friend. Prosecutors allege he secured the loans by forging signatures and claiming he had a stake in property he never owned. They say he used the money on personal expenses and previous debts. "He was very good at convincing people he was a successful entrepreneur," District Attorney Robert Morgenthau said Wednesday while announcing the indictment. "He was very persuasive." Morgenthau said Hochfelder could face additional charges stemming from schemes involving other properties including The Sagamore resort, on Lake George in the Adirondacks, and The Westin Aruba Resort, in the Caribbean. City Hall had no immediate comment.

Paul Hochfelder was awaiting arraignment in state Supreme Court on multiples counts of grand larceny, forgery and other charges. If convicted, he face

Paul Hochfelder was awaiting arraignment in state Supreme Court on multiples counts of grand larceny, forgery and other charges. If convicte...

Jacquie Hammond, 39, owner of the now-closed Canadian School of Modern Broadcasting, is charged with six counts of financial card fraud

Jacquie Hammond, 39, owner of the now-closed Canadian School of Modern Broadcasting, is charged with six counts of financial card fraud, fiv...

Samir Cabrera, 31, was indicted on four counts of wire fraud after federal officials accused him of flipping a number of properties

Samir Cabrera, 31, was indicted on four counts of wire fraud after federal officials accused him of flipping a number of properties without notifying investors he stood to make millions of dollars off the deals.New charges include several additional counts of wire fraud, one count of mail fraud and five counts of money laundering, according to U.S. Attorney’s Office officials.Federal investigators accused Cabrera of purchasing two parcels of undeveloped land in south Fort Myers in 2006, at 13701 Fiddlesticks Blvd. for $3.9 million and 13800 Fiddlesticks Blvd. for just over $3 million, using a company owned by Cabrera. Investigators said he flipped the properties the same day he purchased them, selling for $2.8 million in gains to limited liability companies he also owned and which were funded by several investors.Almost all of the misappropriated funds were from investment funds of investors with the LLC companies, investigators said. The June 2008 indictment additionally states Cabrera “misrepresent(ed) the price of the unimproved real property to potential and actual (investors) for whom the defendant would and did act as fiduciary and trustee.”Cabrera allegedly received a share of the profits for the real estate deals and picked up “kicker fees” disguised as loan payments, potentially netting Cabrera and others upward of $3 million. According to the superseding indictment, Cabrera is accused of conducting financial transactions with some of the money gained through the alleged fraudulent deals, including a deposit to a personal account of $311,441.02; a $100,000 transfer to a Las Vegas casino; and third-party checks totaling $126,731.23.The case is being investigated by the FBI and IRS, and will be prosecuted by Assistant U.S. State Attorneys Jeffrey Michelland and Robert Barclift.If convicted, Cabrera faces a maximum 20 years imprisonment for each count of fraud, and a maximum of 10 years on each money laundering count. He also faces a maximum fine of $250,000 and three years of supervised release, as well as restitution owed to victims of the offenses and forfeiture of property “constituting or derived from proceeds obtained as a result of the offenses,” according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Samir Cabrera, 31, was indicted on four counts of wire fraud after federal officials accused him of flipping a number of properties

Samir Cabrera, 31, was indicted on four counts of wire fraud after federal officials accused him of flipping a number of properties without ...

R Kelly has released a statement denying involvement in a fraud case that scammed investors in South Africa out of over a million dollars.

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFtXahC2LlDFJoQOuWQ7j1PmeJx5MmBbTj9nxkH2ETV7h7sDAIl3i0_ojtOVXs9GyPqN6t5S4iQjg6_4fsy3G6DEJLFQQcpIVc1IrML-8BdpcAd5dZ4egc24WJ6ccUbiCFsJFUw5wFp5FE/s1600-h/KELLY.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5239648985975895762" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFtXahC2LlDFJoQOuWQ7j1PmeJx5MmBbTj9nxkH2ETV7h7sDAIl3i0_ojtOVXs9GyPqN6t5S4iQjg6_4fsy3G6DEJLFQQcpIVc1IrML-8BdpcAd5dZ4egc24WJ6ccUbiCFsJFUw5wFp5FE/s400/KELLY.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" /></a> R Kelly has released a statement denying involvement in a fraud case that scammed investors in South Africa out of over a million dollars. reported, Busiswe Zakwe, of Durban, South Africa, says she deposited $1.5 million dollars to Kelly's bank account after convincing people to invest in a tour of South Africa by the star. When the singer did not come to South Africa, she reportedly absconded with the cash. Police raided her office after receiving complaints that she had conned people out of $1,300 each in 2005. Officials reportedly found a deposit slip which apparently proves the money went into R Kelly's account, and sought to speak to the singer. However, a statement from Kelly's camp today reads: "There is absolutely no truth to the reports that R Kelly received money from a South African woman accused of swindling investors by convincing them to invest in a non-existent R Kelly tour in 2005. "Mr Kelly has no knowledge of this woman, has never received any money from her, and has not been contacted by any law enforcement authorities regarding the matter. He will, of course, cooperate fully with any legitimate investigation of this matter, since he has nothing to hide."

R Kelly has released a statement denying involvement in a fraud case that scammed investors in South Africa out of over a million dollars.

R Kelly has released a statement denying involvement in a fraud case that scammed investors in South Africa out of over a million dollars. r...

damage from the global mortgage meltdown has more than matched that of the savings-and-loan bailouts of the 1980s and early 1990s.

Long before the mortgage crisis began rocking Main Street and Wall Street, a top FBI official made a chilling, if little-noticed, prediction: The booming mortgage business, fueled by low interest rates and soaring home values, was starting to attract shady operators and billions in losses were possible. "It has the potential to be an epidemic," Chris Swecker, the FBI official in charge of criminal investigations, told reporters in September 2004. But, he added reassuringly, the FBI was on the case. "We think we can prevent a problem that could have as much impact as the S&L crisis," he said.Today, the damage from the global mortgage meltdown has more than matched that of the savings-and-loan bailouts of the 1980s and early 1990s. By some estimates, it has made that costly debacle look like chump change. But it's also clear that the FBI failed to avert a problem it had accurately forecast.Banks and brokerages have written down more than $300 billion of mortgage-backed securities and other risky investments in the last year or so as homeowner defaults leaped and weakness in the real estate market spread. . .Most observers have declared the mess a gross failure of regulation. To be sure, in the run-up to the crisis, market-oriented federal regulators bragged about their hands-off treatment of banks and other savings institutions and their executives. But it wasn't just regulators who were looking the other way. The FBI and its parent agency, the Justice Department, are supposed to act as the cops on the beat for potentially illegal activities by bankers and others. But they were focused on national security and other priorities, and paid scant attention to white-collar crimes that may have contributed to the lending and securities debacle. . . Sources familiar with the FBI budget process, who were not authorized to speak publicly about the growing fraud problem, say that he and other FBI criminal investigators sought additional assistance to take on the mortgage scoundrels. They ended up with fewer resources, rather than more.In 2007, the number of agents pursuing mortgage fraud shrank to around 100. By comparison, the FBI had about 1,000 agents deployed on banking fraud during the S&L bust of the 1980s and '90s, said Anthony Adamski, who oversaw financial crime investigations for the FBI at the time. The FBI says it now has about 200 agents working on mortgage fraud, but critics say the agency might have averted much of the problem had it heeded its own warning.

damage from the global mortgage meltdown has more than matched that of the savings-and-loan bailouts of the 1980s and early 1990s.

Long before the mortgage crisis began rocking Main Street and Wall Street, a top FBI official made a chilling, if little-noticed, prediction...

Widespread fraud. Hundreds of billions of dollars in losses. Thousands of displaced homeowners.

Widespread fraud. Hundreds of billions of dollars in losses. Thousands of displaced homeowners. You'd think somebody would have seen it ...

Dubai property crash

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTFqkNALXNktTvhiVmddyL81IpNYADnY7EeT8ix5Kv0_kXMmd8NsohpqG0zpEhfKT4HJsv43v-P9ZM_I_ACOTblFYmZFTFKr5Kquh-ZtIY3-en4WlDrOEuDaq7Anr4R28b5puKU4jTmgI/s1600-h/dub.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5239472663038388258" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTFqkNALXNktTvhiVmddyL81IpNYADnY7EeT8ix5Kv0_kXMmd8NsohpqG0zpEhfKT4HJsv43v-P9ZM_I_ACOTblFYmZFTFKr5Kquh-ZtIY3-en4WlDrOEuDaq7Anr4R28b5puKU4jTmgI/s400/dub.jpg" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" /></a> Soaring housing prices in Dubai are likely to peak in 2009 before falling at least 15 percent as the Gulf emirate takes measures to weed out short-term speculators, a Reuters poll showed on Tuesday.Residential property prices in the desert city, home to palm tree-shaped islands and an indoor ski slope, are likely to jump 35 percent this year, according to the median of forecasts from 10 analysts at banks, investment firms and research institutions.Price growth will probably slow to 8.5 percent next year, when five of nine analysts expect prices to hit a peak after double-digit increases in each year since Dubai opened its property market to foreign investment in 2002.

Dubai property crash

Soaring housing prices in Dubai are likely to peak in 2009 before falling at least 15 percent as the Gulf emirate takes measures to weed out...

Emirati businessman Abid Al-Boom has heard evidence that he owes depositors 847 million dirhams ($231 million)

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi500rSOtigI0cZ1ikYf9Bb50vgsQrr77mff6EEEA5EGbql10VS5hSABoCt23H3wEGmUoGZBg1aU4M4I7GasVFBOIpPcVbuMHFLrm0qeZbJfrJ6LfspppbE41Jr7p6KSTeQ2qzZjcQQZZQ/s1600-h/dubai-courts44_thumb.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5239470180366847218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi500rSOtigI0cZ1ikYf9Bb50vgsQrr77mff6EEEA5EGbql10VS5hSABoCt23H3wEGmUoGZBg1aU4M4I7GasVFBOIpPcVbuMHFLrm0qeZbJfrJ6LfspppbE41Jr7p6KSTeQ2qzZjcQQZZQ/s400/dubai-courts44_thumb.jpg" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" /></a> trial of Emirati businessman Abid Al-Boom has heard evidence that he owes depositors 847 million dirhams ($231 million) while assets seized covered only 15 percent of the amount, the UAE daily The National reported on Wednesday.Thousands of investors, including many on fixed low incomes, say they have lost their life savings in a bogus multi-million dirham investment portfolio run by the Al-Boom, prosecutors said.After receiving numerous complaints from depositors, Dubai Attorney General, Essam Eisa Humaidan, in July ordered al Boom’s arrest along with eight others, including an African business partner, an Emirati business partner and Al-Boom’s brother Khalid, the paper added. “We have registered to date complaints from 3,458 depositors and counting. My office has been busy answering calls from depositors and we have referred the case to the Dubai Rulers Court where auditors will examine al Boom’s accounts to determine where the money has gone,” the paper quoted Yousef Foulaz, the chief prosecutor for Deira First District as saying. "The final amount is likely to go up as we continue to receive and register more complaints."Mr Humaidan had earlier ordered the closure of the offices of Al Boom Holding LLC, and Abid Al Boom Management and Development Properties, the suspension of trading in shares owned by the accused and the freezing of all assets belonging to them, including any real estate and bank accounts held by the accused, in order to secure investors’ rights, the paper said.

Emirati businessman Abid Al-Boom has heard evidence that he owes depositors 847 million dirhams ($231 million)

trial of Emirati businessman Abid Al-Boom has heard evidence that he owes depositors 847 million dirhams ($231 million) while assets seized ...

Clarissa Foster of Shaker Title Services was indicted 18 months ago in an extensive mortgage fraud case that involved 61 people, 38 properties

Clarissa Foster of Shaker Title Services was indicted 18 months ago in an extensive mortgage fraud case that involved 61 people, 38 properties in Cleveland, East Cleveland and Garfield Heights, and 2.85 M million dollars in loans from multiple lenders. Prosecutors charged that she and her 60-year-old mother lied to lender Argent Mortgage Company claiming money they provided for downpayments actually came from borrowers and then collected commissions for the service. Cuyahoga County Assistant Prosecutor Michael Jackson. Cuyahoga County Assistant Prosecutor Michael Jackson: So the lender thinks the borrower is putting $10,000 down but in fact it’s coming from one of the key players in the scheme. In court, witnesses testified that other players in the scheme simply made numbers up on documents so that borrowers could qualify for home loans. Foster was sentenced to five years in prison and ordered to pay $100,000 to Argent. Her mother got three years probation. The two say they will appeal. But that was for only nine of the property deals in the indictment. Later this month, the two head back to court to face charges on the rest of the properties. There are more sentencings in the case ahead. One of the biggest players in the case, Neal Wolf of Ace Home Loans, has pleaded guilty and is set to be sentenced on Sept. 22.

Clarissa Foster of Shaker Title Services was indicted 18 months ago in an extensive mortgage fraud case that involved 61 people, 38 properties

Clarissa Foster of Shaker Title Services was indicted 18 months ago in an extensive mortgage fraud case that involved 61 people, 38 properti...

Peytcho Peev, 41, has been charged with conspiracy to commit an indictable offence, possession of credit card forgery devices

Peytcho Peev, 41, has been charged with conspiracy to commit an indictable offence, possession of credit card forgery devices, and several other related offences. Vaughan man has been charged in the seizure of ATM tampering devices that police alleged were used to steal millions from bank machines across the GTA. Officers from Toronto, York, Peel, the OPP, RCMP and the Canada Border Services Agency began looking into ATM skimming last spring after financial institutions complained about an increase in fraudulent activity. At the time, Toronto Police said a "sophisticated" crime ring was responsible for installing cameras and card readers at ATMs to steal PIN numbers and copy magnetic strip data from debit and credit cards of bank machine users. Using that data, the group was able to create counterfeit bank cards that were used to withdraw cash from ATMs across the GTA, police said. On June 17, officers executed 27 search warrants and eight people were arrested and charged with more than 100 fraud and other related offences. Investigators executed another search warrant Wednesday and uncovered an alleged "industrial-scale" forgery lab inside 27 Roytec Rd. -- near Weston and Langstaff Rds. in Woodbridge. Inside the huge facility, officers found 217 "ATM card reader overlays" in various stages of completion, police said yesterday. The lab also had molding equipment, electronics, a paint shop and a circuit board constructing station, police said. And it was allegedly "stocked for continuous production," police said. Computers were seized during the investigation and are still being examined, but police said they expect to find data from thousands of debit and credit cards. Police have said such scams are a growing concern for the banking industry and more than $100 million was stolen from 159,000 card holders in 2007.

Peytcho Peev, 41, has been charged with conspiracy to commit an indictable offence, possession of credit card forgery devices

Peytcho Peev, 41, has been charged with conspiracy to commit an indictable offence, possession of credit card forgery devices, and several o...

Roddrick Benjamin Russell, 32.arrested in connection with an alleged credit card fraud attempt at a local bank.

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxTXRuwGUTVerBSVdxHnrqnqWqY2xyyL8DmW5ZAi0oC68Ay7CLAiylSqoipgnPM-gqmnpieGbTq5GpgQka2YMc8thd6Yph9qRSSSm19lpQGatXusi1jTopKkMVHvEhMHf9VXUXF6PQb-ch/s1600-h/po.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5238790332356363954" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxTXRuwGUTVerBSVdxHnrqnqWqY2xyyL8DmW5ZAi0oC68Ay7CLAiylSqoipgnPM-gqmnpieGbTq5GpgQka2YMc8thd6Yph9qRSSSm19lpQGatXusi1jTopKkMVHvEhMHf9VXUXF6PQb-ch/s400/po.jpg" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" /></a> Police in Petoskey have arrested a California man in connection with an alleged credit card fraud attempt at a local bank. Petoskey Department of Public Safety officials identified the man as Roddrick Benjamin Russell, 32.Police said officers were called to the 5/3 Bank office in downtown Petoskey at about 11:30 a.m. on Friday when employees there reported a suspicious person trying to make $5,000 withdrawal on a credit card. Police said bank employees had been alerted to credit card fraud attempts by Russell at other bank locations by banking security workers. Police said when they made contact with Russell they determined that he allegedly was attempting a credit card scam with a stolen credit card and false identification. Police arrested Russell on two 20-year racketeering charges, two five-year identity theft charges, four fraud charges and one possession of a controlled substance. Russell remains lodged at the Emmet County Jail in lieu of a $50,000 bond. If he is unable to post bond, he will be arraigned on the charges on Wednesday. A date for a preliminary examination in the case will be set at that time.Police are still looking for a woman accomplice that was reportedly traveling with Russell during several of the alleged credit card fraud attempts at banks throughout Northern Michigan.

Roddrick Benjamin Russell, 32.arrested in connection with an alleged credit card fraud attempt at a local bank.

Police in Petoskey have arrested a California man in connection with an alleged credit card fraud attempt at a local bank. Petoskey Departme...

Mari Matilde Leony Rodriguez-Triana, 44, and Raisa Diaz, 34, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit racketeering.

Six South Florida residents have pleaded guilty in connection with a mortgage fraud scheme that defrauded several financial institutions out of more than $17 million.They were among 15 arrested last month after a 10-month investigation. The defendants faced charges of racketeering, conspiracy to commit racketeering, mortgage fraud, grand theft, identity theft and money laundering. Authorities believe the scheme involved the use of two separate title companies in Miami-Dade County and worked this way:The title agents would prepare fraudulent HUD-1 statements on behalf of the other co-conspirators, which then would be provided to the lender. (A HUD-1 settlement statement is a document that informs the lender how disbursements will be made after a loan is funded.) Many of the HUD-1 statements involved in this case contained fraudulently inflated sales contract prices. For example, a seller might believe his or her property sold for $1.6 million, but a fraudulent HUD-1 statement might reflect the contract sales price for the property as $2.25 million. The lender would fund the loan believing the property sold for the inflated sales price. The title agent, acting on behalf of the other co-conspirators, would then transfer the fraudulently obtained profits into a bank account of either a third party or a shell company controlled by one of the co-conspirators. Monica Fergusson, 37, and Diana Diaz, 40, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit racketeering. They face up to five years in prison and must pay $20,000 to the task force, as well as costs of prosecution and investigation. Mari Matilde Leony Rodriguez-Triana, 44, and Raisa Diaz, 34, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit racketeering. They face up to three years in prison and must pay $10,000 to the task force, as well as costs of prosecution and investigation. Marlene Norono, 47, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit racketeering. She faces up to three years in prison and must pay $15,000 to the task force, as well as costs of prosecution and investigationMario Lubian, 47, pleaded guilty to mortgage fraud and was sentenced to one year of community control, to be followed by four years of probation, including 90 days of county jail. He must also pay $10,000 to the task force, as well as costs of investigation and prosecution.

Mari Matilde Leony Rodriguez-Triana, 44, and Raisa Diaz, 34, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit racketeering.

Six South Florida residents have pleaded guilty in connection with a mortgage fraud scheme that defrauded several financial institutions out...

Australian government website, SCAMwatch, is warning all email users to be wary of an email scam that claims they purchased an airline ticket online.

Australian government website, SCAMwatch, is warning all email users to be wary of an email scam that claims they purchased an airline ticket online. Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), which owns and runs the website, has issued an alert after it received several complaints from net users, of the scam. In a clever ploy, the bogus email informs users their credit card account has been debited by around $500 to pay for the purchase. The fraudsters figure this would cause anybody to get flustered and be intrigued enough, to start clicking hazardously.The ticket and a receipt, served as attachments inside the email, lie in wait to take advantage of bewildered users in their moment of weakness. Clicking on these attachments trigger the download of malicious software that makes a note of all passwords plus other confidential information stored inside computers and transmits the same to the fraudsters.It would be a thing of horror if the fraudsters are able to get hold of online banking passwords. In such a scenario, owners of bank accounts would only be able to stand and watch as the fraudsters strip their accounts off money. Being well aware of its dangers

Australian government website, SCAMwatch, is warning all email users to be wary of an email scam that claims they purchased an airline ticket online.

Australian government website, SCAMwatch, is warning all email users to be wary of an email scam that claims they purchased an airline ticke...

Clarence W. Burk, was charged with insurance fraud and offering a false instrument for filing.

Clarence W. Burk, of 7614 Lauther Road, was charged with insurance fraud and offering a false instrument for filing. If convicted, he could ...

Owner of Mid-West Choppers was building a custom tribute bike for the 9-11 Foundation. Now he could face 30 years in prison.

Chip Miyler is accused of swindling customers out of about $900,000. A federal indictment issued this week charges Miyler with five counts of mail fraud, two counts of wire fraud and one count of bank fraud. Three years ago, the owner of Mid-West Choppers was building a custom tribute bike for the 9-11 Foundation. Now he could face 30 years in prison. Six years ago, Chip Miyler invited WQAD news cameras into his Galesburg shop and told us opening Mid-West Choppers was a dream come true."Build one $1500 bike a month, man, wouldn't that be great?," he said in 2002, a year after the shop opened. "We don't even build bikes like that anymore. Ours are $25 thousand and up."In 2005, his shop got national attention when it was honored with the job of creating a tribute bike for the 9-11 Foundation ."They could have picked anybody in the country, but they chose us," he said at the time.Two months later, Mid-West Choppers suddlenly shut down and filed for bankruptcy.The FBI says dozens of very angry customers were left holding the bag.According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Miyler took hundreds of thousands of dollars in downpayments from customers between 2003 and 2005. The indictment says he defrauded 25 customers who ordered custom-built bikes and diverted the money for his personal use.The indictment also charges Miyler lied about collateral when he applied for a bank loan in October of 2005.If convicted, bank fraud carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison. Mail and wire fraud charges stem from payments collected from customers by mail and wire transfer. Each of those charges carries a maxium penalty of 20 years in prison.

Owner of Mid-West Choppers was building a custom tribute bike for the 9-11 Foundation. Now he could face 30 years in prison.

Chip Miyler is accused of swindling customers out of about $900,000. A federal indictment issued this week charges Miyler with five counts o...

credit card fraud levels resulted in costs of over half a billion pounds last year, with crime levels in relation to credit card fraud rocketing.

credit card fraud levels resulted in costs of over half a billion pounds last year, with crime levels in relation to credit card fraud rocketing. The data comes from a recently released report, and officials state that part of the reason for the rise is that cardholders’ details are being stolen or cloned in destinations abroad where chip and pin in not in use.One official said: “The increase is driven by a rise in fraud abroad with UK card details stolen for use in countries yet to upgrade to chip and pin.” However, it was also noted that there had been an increase in CNP or Card Not Present credit card fraud, which is where the card does not have to be present for a transaction to be made, such as with online or telephone transactions. The number of fraudulent credit card transactions last year soared to 2.7 million transactions, and the cost relating to counterfeit or cloned cards rocketed by around 46% to about £144 million. The information was provided by the payment clearance service APACS and was recently included in the Home Office annual crime figures report. Industry officials have said, however, that online banking fraud levels have been falling, although consumers are still urged to be very vigilant, as phishing scam attempts have been rising.

credit card fraud levels resulted in costs of over half a billion pounds last year, with crime levels in relation to credit card fraud rocketing.

credit card fraud levels resulted in costs of over half a billion pounds last year, with crime levels in relation to credit card fraud rocke...

Richard Culbertson was sentenced to four concurrent terms in prison

Richard Culbertson was sentenced to four concurrent terms in prison on three counts of communications fraud and one count of engaging in a pattern of criminal activity. Culbertson pleaded guilty in June to the second-degree felonies. Richard Culbertson's wife, Kathleen, was sentenced to 60 days in jail and two years probation for her role. In return for her guilty plea, her charges were reduced to class A misdemeanors. Judge James A. Taylor ordered Richard Culbertson transported to the prison immediately to begin serving his sentence. Kathleen Culbertson has until Monday afternoon to report to the Utah County Jail. The pair also were ordered to pay $1.114 million in restitution, but Taylor said the proceeds from selling the houses involved in the scheme can be credited toward the restitution. The Culbertsons used their daughter's and son-in-law's names to buy a house, inflated income on a loan application and pocketed a $59,324 home loan that was supposed to pay for landscaping and remodeling. Richard Culbertson ran for mayor last year, and was defeated by Heather Jackson 1,650 to 549.

Richard Culbertson was sentenced to four concurrent terms in prison

Richard Culbertson was sentenced to four concurrent terms in prison on three counts of communications fraud and one count of engaging in a p...

HBOS’s Andy Hornby has become the victim of identity theft.

A fraudster is believed to have obtained one of Mr Hornby’s bank statements and used it to impersonate the chief executive.Reports suggest t...