White Collar Crime Resources & Links

I created this page as a FBI resource for my website visitors and to help the citizens of San Antonio to learn more about the scams plaguing our community. The Federal Bureau of Investigations will periodically announce new scams or other techniques being used to hurt our economy & in most cases our seniors. If you are accused of a white collar crime, contact my law firm immediately to discuss how we can aggressively defend your position. Robert I. Kahn

 

Adoption Scams

The couples all had their hearts set on adopting a child. They were eventually introduced to an Indiana woman who agreed to provide a healthy baby from Russia…for a price. They started to get excited when they saw a picture of their promised child for the first time. Then, they anxiously waited for the day when they could finally meet the new member of their family.

Only that day never came. They had been scammed.

At least six couples in the Midwest were victimized by this adoption fraud scheme. And there are plenty more rip-offs like this one around the country: cases where birth mothers promised their unborn children to more than one couple or who weren't’t even pregnant…where couples did business with phony domestic adoption agencies or facilitators…or where the international adoptions weren't’t sanctioned by the home country or even involved kidnapped children.

“It’s really awful. These con artists feed on their victims’ hopes and then they get crushed,” says Special Agent Patrick B. Sullivan, who worked an adoption fraud case out of Florida in 2001. In fact, the FBI often calls on its Office for Victims Assistance to help the victims.

read more >

Anti Trust & Price Fixing

The fix was in: for nearly four years, the president of a ready-mixed concrete company in the Indianapolis area had brought his competitors together for a series of secret meetings—in local hotels and in a horse barn near his home in the northern suburbs—to collectively set in the stone the price of their highly popular product.

During the meetings, they all agreed to charge the same high prices, to wipe out or cut back any discounts, and to collectively enforce the deal they struck.

Illegal? You bet. Antitrust laws like the Sherman Antitrust Act, the Clayton Act, and the Federal Trade Commission Act prohibit price fixing, bid rigging, and unfair mergers and acquisitions. It's economics 101: free markets and fair competition ensure that businesses keep scrambling to provide the best products at the best prices…so consumers keep buying, inflation stays low, and the economy stays healthy.

In this case, the conspirators profited handsomely…at the expense of the many area businesses, suppliers, state and federal agencies, and consumers who use ready-mixed concrete—a blend of cement, sand, gravel, water, and other additives that's made on demand and shipped to work sites

read more >

Bankruptcy Fraud

As part of an ongoing effort to maintain the continued integrity of the U.S. bankruptcy system, the FBI and other federal agencies announced on Wednesday that 78 defendants had been named in bankruptcy fraud cases across the nation in the past two months.

"Our bankruptcy system relies on good faith, it depends on the integrity of the debtor and the idea that there exists a reasonable expectation that those who loan money should be repaid," said James "Chip" Burrus., FBI assistant director for the Criminal Investigative Division.

"The abuse of this system by an individual debtor or a professional within the system undermines not only the rehabilitation aspect, but the integrity of the system as a whole," Burrus said.

Since August 1, the FBI has charged 48 subjects and arrested 11 individuals through "Operation Truth or Consequences." The operation was a joint effort with the U.S. Attorney's Offices, the U.S. Trustee Program, and numerous other federal agencies, and was announced at a press conference on Wednesday.

The public can now submit tips on suspected bankruptcy fraud through a new page on the website of the U.S. Trustee Program. A component of the Department of Justice, the U.S. Trustee Program oversees the administration of bankruptcy cases and private trustees.

read more >

Telemarketing Scams

The following are some of the most common scams that the FBI investigates and tips to help prevent you from being victimized. Visit our White-Collar Crime and Cyber webpages for more fraud schemes.

Telemarketing Fraud

When you send money to people you do not know personally or give personal or financial information to unknown callers, you increase your chances of becoming a victim of telemarketing fraud.

Here are some warning signs of telemarketing fraud—what a caller may tell you:

■"You must act 'now' or the offer won't be good."
■"You've won a 'free' gift, vacation, or prize." But you have to pay for "postage and handling" or other charges.
■"You must send money, give a credit card or bank account number, or have a check picked up by courier." You may hear this before you have had a chance to consider the offer carefully.
■"You don't need to check out the company with anyone." The callers say you do not need to speak to anyone including your family, lawyer, accountant, local Better Business Bureau, or consumer protection agency.
■"You don't need any written information about their company or their references."
■"You can't afford to miss this 'high-profit, no-risk' offer."

read more >

House Stealing

What do you get when you combine two popular rackets these days—identity theft and mortgage fraud? A totally new kind of crime: house stealing.

Here’s how it generally works:

…The con artists start by picking out a house to steal—say, YOURS.
…Next, they assume your identity—getting a hold of your name and personal information (easy enough to do off the Internet) and using that to create fake IDs, social security cards, etc.
…Then, they go to an office supply store and purchase forms that transfer property.
…After forging your signature and using the fake IDs, they file these deeds with the proper authorities, and lo and behold, your house is now THEIRS.*

There are some variations on this theme…

…Con artists look for a vacant house—say, a vacation home or rental property—and do a little research to find out who owns it. Then, they steal the owner’s identity, go through the same process of transferring the deed, put the empty house on the market, and pocket the profits.
…Or, the fraudsters steal a house a family is still living in…find a buyer (someone, say, who is satisfied with a few online photos)…and sell the house without the family even knowing. In fact, the rightful owners continue right on paying the mortgage for a house they no longer own.

read more >

Health Care Fraud

Health care fraud costs the country an estimated $60 billion a year. And it’s a rising threat, with national health care spending topping $2 trillion and expenses continuing to outpace inflation. Recent cases also show that medical professionals are more willing to risk patient harm in their schemes.

The FBI is the primary agency for exposing and investigating health care fraud, with jurisdiction over both federal and private insurance programs. We use our analytic expertise to identify key trends and tap into our investigative partnerships with federal, state, and local agencies, as well as our relationships with national groups and associations, to uncover fraud. Our field offices also proactively target fraud through coordinated initiatives, task forces and strike teams, and undercover operations.

read more >

Lying, Cheating & Stealing.

That’s white-collar crime in a nutshell. The term—reportedly coined in 1939—is now synonymous with the full range of frauds committed by business and government professionals.

It’s not a victimless crime. A single scam can destroy a company, devastate families by wiping out their life savings, or cost investors billions of dollars (or even all three, as in the Enron case). Today's fraud schemes are more sophisticated than ever, and we are dedicated to using our skills to track down the culprits and stop scams before they start.

read more >