To stay up-to-date on recent fraud cases and other crimes occurring in the U.S., check out the FBI and the Department of Justice websites for current news related to identity theft, various types of fraud, and other law enforcement actions across the country.
Read on to learn about May 2018 financial fraud, investment fraud, identity theft, and other crime investigations appearing on the United States Department of Justice and FBI websites.
Financial Fraud
Read Article: Six Family Members Indicted on Federal Charges Related to $4 Million Extortion Scheme
May 3, 2018
Washington – Five people, all members of the same family, have been indicted on federal charges alleging that they took part in a $4 million extortion and money laundering scheme. A sixth family member has been indicted on charges of tampering with a witness.
The indictments were announced by U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu, Nancy McNamara, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and Michael E. Horowitz, Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Justice. Read More
Securities, Commodities, & Investment Fraud
Read Article: Former Belmont Resident Convicted of $6 Million Investment Fraud Scheme
May 8, 2018
Boston, MA – A former Belmont resident was convicted by a federal jury in connection with a decade long Ponzi-style investment scheme in which he defrauded 15 investors of over $6 million.
John William Cranney, a/k/a Jack Cranney, 76, of El Paso, Texas, was convicted following a two-week trial of three counts of wire fraud, 12 counts of mail fraud, and three counts of money laundering. U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani scheduled sentencing for Aug. 2, 2018. Pending sentencing, Judge Talwani released Cranney on electronic monitoring and restricted his travel to El Paso County, Texas. Read More
Financial Fraud, Identity Theft
Read Article: Armenian National Pleads Guilty to Gas Pump Skimming Scheme
May 15, 2018
Alexandria, VA – An Armenian national and resident of Glendale, California, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud and aggravated identity theft in connection with his involvement in obtaining and using thousands of stolen credit and debit card numbers.
According to court documents, Armen Saplekchian, 37, conspired with at least six other individuals to steal at least 18,000 credit and debit cards numbers, as well as the personal identification numbers associated with many of the stolen card numbers, through the use of electronic devices known as “skimmers.” Specifically, conspirators attached skimmers to gas pump payment systems, collected the information captured when payment cards were swiped at the compromised gas pumps by unwitting customers, and encoded the stolen card numbers onto physical payment cards. Read More
Securities, Commodities, & Investment Fraud
May 15, 2018
New York – Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that Edward Durante, a/k/a “Ted Wise,” a/k/a “Efran Eisenberg,” a/k/a “Yulia,” a/k/a “Ed Simmons,” was sentenced to 216 months in prison for defrauding at least 100 investors of more than $15 million. Durante was also sentenced for his perjurious testimony during an SEC deposition. Durante pled guilty on August 23, 2016, to conspiracy to commit securities fraud, securities fraud, money laundering, and perjury. Durante was sentenced by United States District Judge Andrew L. Carter Jr.
U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said: “The fraud scheme for which Edward Durante was sentenced began while he was still in prison from a prior securities fraud conviction. Durante returned to what he knew best, lying to investors – many of whom were retirees who lost their life savings – about how their money would be used, and concealing his manipulation of the securities market. Edward Durante is now a twice-sentenced securities fraud felon.” Read More
Elder Justice, Financial Fraud, Securities, Commodities, & Investment Fraud
Read Article: Investment Advisor Sentenced to More Than 5 Years in Prison for Misappropriating $6.5 Million in Client Funds
May 16, 2018
Chicago, IL – An investment advisor was sentenced to more than five years in federal prison for stealing $6.5 million from several clients, including family members in the Chicago area.
Henry Meyer, who owned HCM Asset Management LLC in Coral Gables, Fla., misappropriated the money from 2009 to 2016. Most of Meyer’s clients were his family members and friends, some of whom were elderly and had invested their retirement savings. Meyer used some of the stolen funds to pay personal expenses, including rent, utilities, and car payments. His credit card statements reflect expensive purchases at restaurants, including lavish tips in the hundreds of dollars. Read More
Health Care Fraud
Read Article: Five Former Salesmen For Morris County Clinical Lab Sentenced For Bribing Doctors In $100 Million Test Referral Scheme
May 17, 2018
Newark, N.J. — Five individuals were sentenced for bribing doctors in exchange for test referrals as part of a long-running and elaborate scheme operated by Biodiagnostic Laboratory Services LLC (BLS), of Parsippany, New Jersey, its president and numerous associates, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.
Doug Hurley, 38, of Hillsborough, New Jersey, and Kevin Kerekes, 52, of Florham Park, New Jersey, were both sentenced to 24 months in prison. Luke Chicco, 45, of Garden City, New York, was sentenced to 21 months in prison. Kristina Hamdan, 40, of Paterson was sentenced to 41 months in prison. David McCann, 45, of Lyndhurst, New Jersey, was sentenced to three years of probation. U.S. District Judge Stanley R. Chesler imposed all five sentences in Newark federal court. Read More
Investment Fraud
Read Article: A Pyramid of Lies: Man’s $43 Million Ponzi Scheme Fleeced Tennessee Friends and Neighbors
May 17, 2018
Sparta, TN – Nobody would have suspected that the affable Tennessee tractor salesman who was raised among them, tended their lawns in high school, and prayed beside them at Sunday services was scamming them by the millions. Indeed, that’s probably what made the man’s investment scheme so successful, investigators say.
Jeffery Gentry, 40, pleaded guilty in federal court to charges related to his $43 million scheme that bilked investors—including friends, family, neighbors, and fellow parishioners—out of more than $10 million. Gentry, who owned and operated Gentry Brothers Tractor Supply and Gentry Auto in the Middle Tennessee town of Sparta, was sentenced on May 14 in U.S. District Court in Nashville to three years in prison. He was also ordered to pay $10.4 million in restitution to his victims. Read More
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