FraudCaster

Archive for June, 2009

The FBI has its hands full as fraud is on the rise.  FBI deputy director John Pistole told the Senate judiciary committee yesterday that it is conducting 500 investigations of corporate fraud.
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David E. Ruskjer, 58, of Dave’s Investment/Loan Program, is accused of bilking his clients out of $16 million in an investment scheme.
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Since 1995 and with the 30 million ads posted every month, Craigslist does a lot of good for a lot of people. It evens rivals local newspapers for their classified ad business. Like anything else where there is something good, someone will figure out a way to make it bad…
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Linda Mitchell, 42, uses her friends’ personal information to obtain 3 credit cards and racks up the bill to a tune of $2,374.
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A 40% return on investment in as little as 30 days is what an alleged con artist used to raise $6 million worth of investments in a purported foreclosure reinstatement program. Her targets were primarily African-American and Hispanic communities.
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Eight people have been indicted for an alleged Medicare fraud that cost the federal government $30 million. The alleged fraud ring apparently used store fronts and post office boxes spread across five states to bill Medicare by filing false claims for obsolete HIV therapy.
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David Hernandez, a fugitive financier who helped launch a Chicago sports Web site and was charged in what prosecutors describe as an $11 million Ponzi scheme was captured Monday in central Illinois, police said.
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After a three-year investigation, Alan Ralsky, one time the world’s most notorious illegal spammers, according to U.S. Attorney Terrence Berg, now stands convicted for running an illegal international spamming operation that sent billions of illegal e-mail advertisements to pump up Chinese ‘penny’ stocks and then reap profits by causing trades in these same stocks while others bought at the inflated prices.
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Rosario Divins, 55, of San Antonio, a self proclaimed foreclosure prevention specialist, was found guilty by a federal jury on seven counts of criminal contempt and mail fraud.
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Another multi-billion dollar Ponzi scheme? – $7 billion to be exact according to the U.S. Department of Justice!

An “advanced fee fraud” is one where the innocent victim is persuaded to pay a fee in advance in the hope of realizing a significantly larger sum. This is the case in the recent article about David Gwin of Colorado. Mr. Gwin allegedly told people and companies that he would secure multi-million dollar loans per their request. He then required them to pay him a fee in advance which he called due diligence fees, retainers or application fees.
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A corporate officer, the Chief Financial Officer specifically, orders $1,000,000 worth of pipe for his company. He executes a wire transfer from the companies bank account to the pipe company. No problem, right? Right. Unless, of course, the CFO then calls the pipe company minutes later, cancels the order and requests the pipe company wire transfer the money to a completely different company.
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David J. Hernandez, 48, of Downers Grove, Illinois was charged this morning with mail fraud in connection with allegedly engaging in a ponzi scheme. According to the complaint filed by the Department of Justice, Hernandez used “NextStep Financial Services to solicit and obtain investments through the Internet by making false promises and representations about himself and the safety and returns of his investment products”.
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Fifty year old David Gwin of Commerce City, Colorado was indicted by a federal grand jury on charges involving a multi-million dollar loan scheme. According to the indictment, Gwin defrauded individuals and companies seeking multi-million dollar loans by collecting an advanced fee from them and then failing to secure funding for the loans that were sought. He received fees totaling $1,127,700.
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