Scam

Janet Fordham died in crash after travelling to see man who claimed he would help to recover money from earlier scamsA British woman who was scammed of up to £1m in a string of so-called “romance frauds” died in a road crash after travelling to west Africa to try to recoup some of her lost fortune, an inquest in Devon has heard.Janet Fordham, 69, was cheated of her life savings and her home over five years by fraudsters apparently based in the UK, Germany, the US and Ghana, the inquest in Exeter was told. Continue reading...

Serious Fraud Office investigation relates to firms allegedly submitting false invoices for work they failed to carry outThe UK’s Serious Fraud Office has arrested four people on suspicion of a home insulation scam that may have cost energy companies as much as £44m.The SFO and the National Crime Agency said on Wednesday the unnamed people were arrested in coordinated dawn raids across England on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud. Continue reading...

Jose Ramos-Horta urged by opposition to explain diplomatic passport given to businessman behind resort project, who denies any involvement with organised crimeTimor-Leste’s opposition has questioned how foreign investors in a proposed cryptocurrency resort obtained prime beachfront real estate in the country’s capital, and has called on the president to explain why he issued a diplomatic passport to a Chinese businessman involved in the project.Speaking in parliament in Dili on Monday, Fretilin opposition party MP Florentino Ximenes da Costa “Sinarai” raised concerns about the proposed AB Digital Technology Resort, which was the subject of a months-long investigation by the Guardian and Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP). Continue reading...

State investigated claims of bear attacks on cars, unconvincingly backed up by video of person in bear suitWhen it comes to the California department of insurance, don’t poke the bear.That is the lesson three individuals in Los Angeles learned recently when they were sentenced to jail time for an insurance fraud scheme in which they staged attacks on high-end vehicles by having a person dress up in a bear costume – then pretending that person was an actual bear. Continue reading...

Luther Davis, a national champion with the Crimson Tide, is said to have worn wigs and make-up to secure fraudulent loansA former University of Alabama football star plans to plead guilty later this month to orchestrating an alleged scheme in which he impersonated NFL players and defrauded lenders out of nearly $20m. The alleged scam is described in detail by the US attorney for the northern district of Georgia, including depictions of the former defensive lineman donning disguises during loan closings.Luther Davis, a member of the Alabama team that won the 2010 national championship game, along with a partner, CJ Evins, “obtained at least thirteen fraudulent loans totaling more than $19,845,000”, the criminal information filing alleges. A criminal information (CI) document is filed by a US attorney when a defendant agrees to waive the constitutional right to indictment by a grand jury and instead proceed by typically entering a guilty plea; both Davis and Evins are doing so according to the court docket.Aliya Sports and Sure Sports did not reply to a request for comment for this article. Continue reading...

Fraudsters send emails claiming storage is full or nearly full, then trick people into clicking on links that can expose bank and personal detailsFor a while you’ve been getting messages from Apple saying “your iCloud storage is full”. They say you have exceeded your storage plan, so documents are no longer being backed up, and photos you take aren’t being uploaded.You have been resisting Apple’s efforts to get you to pay a minimum of 99p a month for more storage. But it seems that you can’t keep putting off the inevitable: you have received an email which says your iCloud account has been blockedand your photos and videos will be deleted very soon. To keep them you need to upgrade immediately, it says. Continue reading...

Rodney Ward returned debris instead of pets’ ashes and stored animals’ bodies in hearse or threw them out on roadSign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxA Baltimore county man has been sentenced to 20 years in prison after being found guilty of defrauding pet owners through his fake crematorium business, returning rocks and sand to grieving victims instead of ashes.On Tuesday, 56-year-old Rodney Ward was also ordered to pay $12,510 in restitution to victims. He had pleaded guilty to one count of felony theft and five counts of malicious destruction of property over $1,000, according to the Baltimore county state’s attorney’s office. Continue reading...