- "Agreements to Agree"
- "As Is" Deals
- "Time is of the Essence"
- Abuse of Power (Judicial)
- Access, generally
- Accidents, generally
- Administrative Proceedings, generally
- Adult Establishments
- Adverse Possession
- Advertising, generally
- Affordable Housing
- Agriculture & Markets Law
- Air Pistols
- Airlines, generally
- Alterations, generally
- Anatomical gifts, generally
- Animal Cruelty
- Animal Shelters, generally
- Antisocial Personality Disorder
- Appellate Division
- Appellate Term
- Arbitration, generally
- Architects, generally
- Article 78 Proceedings
- Assault, generally
- Assignments, generally
- Assumption of Risk
- Athletes, generally
- Attorney General, New York State
- Attorney-in-Fact, generally
- Attorneys' Fees
- Attorneys, generally
- Bat Bugs, generally
- Battery, generally
- Bed Bugs, generally
- Beneficiary Designations
- Broker's Commission
- Bulls, generally
- Bylaws, generally
- Cabarets
- Cars, generally
- Cats, generally
- Censures, generally
- Cigar/Cigarette Smoke, generally
- Civil Rights
- Claim Preclusion
- Code of Conduct for United States Judges
- Code of Professional Responsibility
- Commercial Tenants
- Con Edison
- Condemnation, generally
- Condominiums, generally
- Confidentiality Provisions
- Consent Forms
- Constitutional Issues
- Construction, generally
- Constructive Eviction
- Contempt, generally
- Contracts of Sale, generally
- Contracts, generally
- Conversion, generally
- Cooperatives, generally
- Copyright Law, generally
- Corporate Residential Leases
- Cosmetic Renovations
- Court of Appeals
- Courthouse Security
- Covenants Not to Compete
- Custodial Interrogations, generally
- DHCR
- Deceptive Trade Practices
- Defamation, generally
- Defaults, generally
- Demands of the Rent
- Deregulation, generally
- Disciplinary Rules
- Disclosure, generally
- Discrimination, generally
- Doctors, generally
- Dog Bites
- Dogs, generally
- Drug Holdovers
- E-mails, generally
- Easements, generally
- Elder Abuse
- Electronic Mail, generally
- Eminent Domain
- Employment Agreements
- Essays
- Estoppel Certificates
- Ethics, generally
- Events Calendar
- Experts, generally
- Extortion, generally
- False Imprisonment, generally
- Family Court, generally
- Flooding, generally
- Food, generally
- Foreclosures, generally
- Fraud, generally
- Frequent Flyer Miles
- Frivolous Litigation Conduct
- Gay Rights, generally
- Goldfish, generally
- Graffiti
- Guarantees
- Guardians ad Litem
- Guns, generally
- HPD
- Hamburgers, generally
- Harassment
- Heat
- High-Rent Vacancy Decontrol
- Holdover Proceedings
- Home Improvements
- Homeland Security
- Horses, generally
- Hospitals, generally
- Hostile Work Environments
- Hot Water
- Hotels/Motels, generally
- Identity Theft
- Illegal Evictions
- Illegal Use
- Inadequate Supervison, generally
- Incapacity, generally
- Individual Apartment Improvements (IAIs)
- Injunctions, generally
- Insurance Policies
- Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress
- Investigators, generally
- Judges, generally
- Juries, generally
- Labor Law, generally
- Lawyers, generally
- Lease Defaults
- Libel, generally
- Licensing, generally
- Life Estates
- Life Insurance Policies
- Liquor Licenses, generally
- Lost Baggage
- Malicious Prosecution, generally
- Marriage, generally
- Mental Illness, generally
- Minors, generally
- Mitchell-Lama Buildings
- Mold, generally
- Month-to-Month Tenants
- Mortgages, generally
- Motions to Dismiss
- Moving Companies, generally
- Negligence
- New York City Department of Buildings
- New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development
- New York City Department of Sanitation
- New York City Rent Guidelines Board
- New York City Transit Authority
- New York State Attorney General
- New York State Department of State
- New York State Division of Housing and Community Renewal (DHCR)
- New York State Division of Human Rights
- New York State Liquor Authority
- Noise
- Non-Competition/Non-Disclosure Agreements
- Nonpayment Proceedings
- Nonprimary Residence Proceedings
- Notice of Claim
- Notices to Cure
- Nuisance
- Odors, generally
- Office of Court Administration
- Options to Renew
- Owner's Use
- Parking Violations
- Paternity Disputes
- Penal Law, generally
- Penalties
- Perpetual Leases, generally
- Personal Injury
- Pests, generally
- Pets, generally
- Politics, generally
- Poster Law, New York City
- Power of Attorney, generally
- Preferential Rents
- Premises Liability
- Prevailing Party
- Privacy Rights
- Pro Se Litigants
- Professional Responsibility
- Profiteering
- Property Condition Disclosure Statement
- Property Damage
- Property Transfers
- Protective Services, generally
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- Public Interest
- Punitive Damages
- Quantum Meruit
- Reasonable Accommodation
- Release Forms
- Religious Discrimination
- Renewal Options
- Renovations, generally
- Rent Control
- Rent Demands
- Rent Overcharge, generally
- Rent Stabilization
- Rent, generally
- Residential Tenants
- Restaurants, generally
- Restraints on Alienation
- Restrictive Covenants
- Reward Travel
- Roommates
- Sanctions
- School Buses, generally
- Searches and Seizures
- Security Deposits
- Self Representation
- Senior Citizens
- Settlements, generally
- Sexual Assault, generally
- Sexual Harassment, generally
- Slander, generally
- Small Claims
- Social Dancing
- Solicitation, generally
- Specific Performance
- Spoliation
- State Commission on Judicial Conduct
- Statute of Limitations
- Statutory Interpretation
- Stipulations, generally
- Strict Liability
- Structural Renovations
- Subject Matter Jurisdiction
- Subleasing, generally
- Succession Rights
- Supers, generally
- Surveys, generally
- Taxes, generally
- Teachers, generally
- Termination Notices
- Tests, generally
- Title Disputes
- Trade Secrets, generally
- Traffic Lights, generally
- Transportation Security Administration (TSA)
- Treble Damages
- Trespass, generally
- Trusts & Estates
- Undue Influence
- Unenforceable Provisions
- Union Protests, generally
- United States Court of Appeals, Second Circuit
- United States Supreme Court
- Unreasonable Restraints on Alienation
- Unsigned Agreements
- Utilities, generally
- Vacancy Decontrol
- Verdicts
- Vermin, generally
- Vibrations, generally
- Vicious Propensities
- Voter Apathy
- Waiver
- Warrants, generally
- Warranty of Habitability
- Water Leaks, generally
- Weapons, generally
- Wills, generally
- Wrongful Evictions
- Zoning
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Debt Collectors Settle with FTC, Agree to Stop Deceiving and Abusing Consumers Consumers Were Subjected to Collection Efforts for Magazine Subscription Debts They Did Not Owe, FTC Alleges Defendants in a debt collection operation that allegedly sought payment for bogus...
Continue reading "SALE OF PHONY MAGAZINES WILL COST THEM MILLIONS" »
A.G. Schneiderman Announces Guilty Plea Of Queens Employer Who Failed To Pay Minimum Wage Owner of Queens Catering Hall to Pay over $450,000 Restitution To Workers Who Were Paid as Little as $2 An Hour Company Filed False Quarterly...
Continue reading "DAE DONG MANOR PAID $2 AN HOUR" »
A.G. Schneiderman Announces Arrest Of Bronx Fraudster Who Operated Multi-Million Dollar Ponzi Scheme Owner Of The Van Zandt Agency Arrested On 35-count Indictment Charging Securities Fraud, Grand Larceny, Scheme To Defraud And Money Laundering Schneiderman: Hardworking People Put Their Trust...
Continue reading "VAN ZANDT FACES 25 YEARS" »
FTC Approves Final Order Settling Charges that Star Pipe Products, Ltd. Acted Anticompetitively in Market for Municipal Water System Iron Pipe Fittings; FTC Approves Final Orders Settling Charges that Auto Dealers Falsely Promised to Pay Off Consumers' Trade-ins, No Matter...
Continue reading "STICK THIS IN YOUR PIPE" »
Audit Finds Village Clerk Stole Funds Wolcott Official Made Off With $68,000 in Unauthorized Payments to Herself The former clerk-treasurer for the Village of Wolcott in Wayne County stole $68,000 from taxpayers over a four-year period, according to an audit...
Continue reading "SHE HAD "CREATIVE" WAYS TO STEAL" »
FTC Sues Funeral Home for Continuing Failure to Disclose Prices New York Funeral Home Previously Cited for Price List Violations in 2001 The Federal Trade Commission has charged a funeral home with violating the FTC's Funeral Rule, which helps people...
Continue reading "IS HARRISON FUNERAL HOME DEAD?" »
Foreclosure Scams If you think an individual or company is running a mortgage foreclosure scam, you may file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). If you think an individual or company is running a mortgage foreclosure scam that...
Continue reading "WATCH FOR THESE FORECLOSURE SCAMS" »
Myspace Settles FTC Charges That It Misled Millions of Users About Sharing Personal Information with Advertisers Settlement Will Require Regular Privacy Assessments for the Next 20 Years Social networking service Myspace has agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that...
Continue reading "WILL MYSPACE CONTAIN ITS MISREPRESENTATIONS" »
State Paid Inmates More Than $36K in Improper Workers' Compensation Benefits Cross-Checking Data Would Eliminate Payments And Cut Insurance Premium Costs for Businesses The State Insurance Fund improperly paid seven inmates more than $36,000 in workers' compensation benefits while they...
Continue reading "INMATES GOT WORKERS' COMP?" »
A.G. Schneiderman Announces $54 Million Settlements With Pharmaceutical Giant Abbott Laboratories For Deceptive Practices $50 Million To Resolve Civil and Criminal Allegations That Abbott Illegally Marketed "Depakote" $4 Million To End Deceptive Advertising Practices & Off-Label Promotion Of Anti-Seizure Drug...
Continue reading "ABBOTT SETTLES WITH NEW YORK FOR $54 MILLION" »
Got this e-mail the other day. This is yet another variation of those "get-broke-quick" scams that are circling the globe. (Frankly, if you want to lose money, buy a lottery ticket.) * * * nadine konan soro [nadddik05soro@msn.com] Hello...
Continue reading "HELLO DEAR BELOVED FRIEND (IN MIND)" »
New York City Funeral Home Settles FTC Charges it Failed to Disclose Casket Prices Agency Charges Blair-Mazzarella Home With Funeral Rule Violations The operator of a New York City funeral home has agreed to settle a Federal Trade Commission enforcement...
Continue reading "THE FTC BURIED THIS CASE" »
FTC Announces Preliminary Agenda for Workshop about Advertising Disclosures in Online and Mobile Media The Federal Trade Commission will host a one-day public workshop on Wednesday, May 30, 2012 to consider the need for new guidance for online advertisers...
Continue reading "CONTROLLING ONLINE ADVERTISING" »
A.G. Schneiderman Files $1.3 Million Lawsuit Against Real Estate Developer For Selling Defective Condos Lawsuit Seeks $1.3 Million in Restitution Plus $85,000 in Civil Penalties for Defrauded Purchasers Lawsuit Also Seeks Permanently To Ban Condo Developer From Selling Apartments In...
Continue reading "SCHWARTZ SUED FOR FRAUD" »
FTC Wins Court Judgment Against Massive Get-Rich-Quick Infomercial Scam Agency Alleges that Nearly One Million Consumers Lost More Than $450 Million The Federal Trade Commission won a court judgment against the marketers of three get-rich-quick systems who deceived nearly a...
Continue reading "NO GETTING-RICH-QUICK" »
Got this e-mail the other day. This is yet another variation of those "get-broke-quick" scams that are circling the globe. (Frankly, if you want to lose money, buy a lottery ticket.) * * * Mrs Zanab Ahmed [zanahmed4christ@aol.com] Greetings...
Continue reading "MRS. AHMED AIN'T GIVING IT AWAY" »
Got this e-mail the other day. This is yet another variation of those "get-broke-quick" scams that are circling the globe. (Frankly, if you want to lose money, buy a real lottery ticket.) * * * Confirmation Ticket Nє: 33-48-19-H5H-@WIN Contact...
Continue reading "I'M A EURO MILLIONAIRE!" »
Newman Ferrara Investigates Chesapeake Energy Corp. for Possible Breaches of Fiduciary Duty Newman Ferrara LLP (www.nfllp.com) has begun an investigation into whether certain officers and directors of Chesapeake Energy Corp. ("Chesapeake" or the "Company") (NYSE: CHK) breached their fiduciary...
Continue reading "HAS CHESAPEAKE ENERGY RUN OUT OF STEAM?" »
FTC Settlement Bans Bogus Timeshare Resellers from Timeshare Business, Telemarketing Defendants Allegedly Did Not Help Consumers Sell Their Timeshare Properties as Promised A telemarketing operation that allegedly deceived consumers who were trying to sell their timeshare properties is permanently banned...
Continue reading "TIME'S UP FOR THESE TIMESHARE RESELLERS" »
A.G. Schneiderman Announces Guilty Plea Of Former Orange County Resident Posing As A "Dying Bride" For Felony Fraud Town Of Montgomery Bride Faces Sentencing For Faking Terminal Illness To Scam Mid-Hudson Community Members Out Of Thousands Of Dollars Schneiderman: Vega...
Continue reading "DYING BRIDE PLEADS GUILTY" »
Got this e-mail the other day. This is yet another variation of those "get-broke-quick" scams that are circling the globe. (Frankly, if you want to lose money, buy a lottery ticket.) * * * Hillary Tiachi [hillarytiachi55@msn.com] Dear Counsel My...
Continue reading "NO SETTLEMENT FOR HILLARY TIACHI" »
Newman Ferrara LLP Investigates Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. for Possible Violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act NEW YORK, April 25, 2012 (BUSINESS WIRE) - Newman Ferrara LLP (www.nfllp.com) has begun an investigation into whether certain officers and directors of...
Continue reading "HOW CORRUPT WAS WAL-MART?" »
LicensingALJ recommends license revocation and fine for taxi driver who overcharged passengers 47 times. The Taxi & Limousine Commission brought allegations that a taxicab driver overcharged passengers by charging them the out-of-town rates for trips within New York City on...
Continue reading "CABBIE OVERCHARGED" »
A.G. Schneiderman Sues Business Equipment Company For Ripping Off $3.5 Million From Former Customers New York-Based SKS Associates And Northern Leasing Systems Drained Millions From Bank Accounts Nationwide Without Warning Lawsuit Seeks Restitution For Tens Of Thousands Of Defrauded...
Continue reading "BUSINESS EQUIPMENT COMPANY WAS EQUIPPED TO DECEIVE" »
A.G. Schneiderman Files Groundbreaking Tax Fraud Lawsuit Against Sprint For Over $300 Million Acting On Whistleblower Information, A.G. Uncovers Telecom Giant's 7-Year Failure To Collect & Pay Sales Taxes First Ever Tax Enforcement Action Under Schneiderman's Landmark "False Claims Act"...
Continue reading "SPRINT-NEXTEL FAILED TO PAY TAXES" »
ELECTEDS: FIX THE FLEET OF FLOATING LEMONS OR LET'S RECOUP OUR MONEY $142 million and counting... New Staten Island ferry boats unreliable and budget-busting ********************************** On Friday, City Comptroller John C. Liu joined with State Senator Diane Savino, State...
Continue reading "A FLEET OF FLOATING LEMONS?" »
A.G. Schneiderman Secures $61 Million Settlement With Pharmaceutical Giant Merck For Falsely Promoting The Safety Of Vioxx Merck Misrepresented Heart Safety Of Dangerous Drug, Marketed Vioxx For Uses Not Approved By FDA Schneiderman: Merck Will Be Held Accountable For Putting...
Continue reading "MERCK TO FORK OVER $61 MILLION" »
DiNapoli: Audits Reveal More Than $40M in Improper Payments Made by State's Medicaid Program Two audits released earlier this week revealed that data problems and delays in posting information to eMedNY, New York's Medicaid claims processing system, caused $36 million in improper...
Continue reading "NEW YORK WASTED $40 MILLION" »
A. G. Schneiderman Announces Criminal Charges Against Doctor & Two Fake Surgeons Who Disfigured Women Two Unlicensed Individuals & One Medical Doctor Recruited Women from Queens Spa & Performed Liposuction Without General Anesthesia, Permanently Disfiguring Them Victims Are Encouraged To...
Continue reading "A.G. DOES A PROCEDURE ON FAKE DOCTORS" »
FTC Presses Funeral Homes in Nine State to Comply with Consumer Protection Law FTC's Funeral Rule Requires Funeral Homes to Provide Price Lists to Consumers Investigators working undercover in nine states detected significant violations of Federal Trade Commission consumer protection requirements...
Continue reading "ARE THESE FUNERAL HOMES DEAD?" »
wiselawny Lawyer, Hired by Bronx Surrogate, Wore Wire in Cleanup Effort By: Dan Wise John J. Reddy Jr., who was hired by Bronx Surrogate Lee L. Holzman to clean up a scandal in his court, wore a wire as a...
Continue reading "MR. REDDY: WAS THIS WISE?" »
Loan Officer Pleads Guilty for Role in Mortgage Fraud Scheme That Resulted in More Than $6.5 Million in Losses A loan officer for a Florida mortgage company pleaded guilty late Monday in the Southern District of Florida to one count...
Continue reading "MORTGAGE FRAUDSTER FACES 20 YEARS" »
DiNapoli: $16.4 Million in Dubious Tax Refunds Blocked The State Comptroller's office has halted $16.4 million in questionable personal income tax refunds after finding 5,903 improper filings among those who've filed so far this year, State Comptroller Thomas P....
Continue reading "DINAPOLI BLOCKS PHONY TAX REFUNDS" »
FTC Action Halts Alleged Scam That Dangled the False Promise of 'Free Gas for Life' Then Charged Consumers for Unwanted E-Magazine Subscriptions 'Green Millionaire Book' Promoters Settle FTC Charges; Will Pay Almost $2 Million for Consumer Refunds The Federal...
Continue reading "NO FREE GAS FOR LIFE?" »
A.G. Schneiderman Announces Indictment Of Former NYC Parks Employee For Bid-Rigging And Accepting Bribes Joint Investigation With DOI Reveals Parks Employee Pocketed More Than $20,000 In Kickbacks Schneiderman: Corrupt Government Employees Who Betray The Public's Trust Will Be Vigorously...
Continue reading "PARKS PERSON'S PAYOLA PLAN?" »
Syracuse Woman Sentenced for Stealing from the New York State Retirement System Syracuse resident Kathleen Prince was sentenced last week in Onondaga County Court for stealing more than $29,000 from the New York State and Local Retirement System (NYSLRS), marking the...
Continue reading "A LARCENOUS PRINCE" »
NYSHIP Contractors Wasting Millions in Taxpayer Money Audits Fault Empire Blue Cross and Blue Shield and United HealthCare The New York State Health Insurance Program (NYSHIP) erroneously paid as much as $11 million for special items such as implants,...
Continue reading "WHO'S RUNNING THE NYSHIP?" »
Newman Ferrara LLP Investigating Breach of Fiduciary Duty at eResearch Technology in Connection with Genstar Capital, LLC Acquisition Newman Ferrara LLP (www.nfllp.com) announced earlier this week that it is investigating the sale of eResearch Technology, Inc. ("ERT") (NASDAQ: ERT) to Genstar...
Continue reading "INVESTIGATING eRESEARCH" »
Newman Ferrara LLP Pursues Securities Fraud Claims Against A123 Systems, Inc. and Reminds Investors of June 1, 2012 Deadline Newman Ferrara LLP (www.nfllp.com) announced yesterday that a securities class action was filed on behalf of investors in A123 Systems,...
Continue reading "A123 COUNTDOWN" »
Court Halts Alleged Fake Debt Collector Calls from India, Grants FTC Request to Stop Defendants Who Posed as Law Enforcers California-based Defendant Ran Phantom Debt Collection Scheme from His Home, FTC Alleges In response to charges from the Federal Trade...
Continue reading "DON'T PAY MONEY YOU DON'T OWE!" »
SCHUMER, KELLY ANNOUNCE MAJOR AGREEMENT BETWEEN CELL CARRIERS AND FCC TO PERMANENTLY DISABLE STOLEN IPHONES AND SMARTPHONES SO THEY CANNOT BE RESOLD ON THE BLACK MARKET; WILL DRAMATICALLY REDUCE CELL PHONE THEFTS, FASTEST GROWING CRIME IN NEW YORK An Amazing...
Continue reading "HOW WORTHLESS IS AN EMPTY WALLET?" »
A.G. Schneiderman Announces Indictment Of Former Orange County Resident Posing As A "Dying Bride" For Felony Fraud & Larceny Town Of Montgomery Bride Faked Terminal Illness To Scam Mid-Hudson Community Members Out Of Thousands Of Dollars Schneiderman: Vega Will Be...
Continue reading "A DEAD PHONY DYING BRIDE" »
Audit Reveals Alleged Procurement Improprieties at SUNY Downstate Medical Center An audit spurred by anonymous tips revealed fake bids for construction contracts and other procurement problems at SUNY Downstate Medical Center, according to New York State Comptroller Thomas P....
Continue reading "SUNY ISN'T SORRY?" »
Dear Sir/Madam, RE: Funds Investment and Management Placement of USD65 Million. My name is Mr. Tang Kam Sun, Executive Director and Head of Personal Banking (Industrial and Commercial Bank of China). I am a private investor who wants to...
Continue reading "HE WANTS TO GIVE YOU $65 MILLION" »
FTC Action Leads to Court Order Banning Final "U.S. Homeowners Relief" Defendants from Debt and Mortgage Relief Business At the request of the Federal Trade Commission, a federal court has imposed a court order with a $3.89 million judgment against...
Continue reading "BAIN'S BUSINESS BANNED" »
Newman Ferrara LLP Investigates Groupon, Inc. for Possible Breaches of Fiduciary Duty Newman Ferrara LLP (www.nfllp.com) has begun an investigation into whether certain executive officers of Groupon, Inc. ("Groupon" or the "Company") (NASDAQ: GRPN) breached their fiduciary duties to...
Continue reading "GROUPON DOESN'T WANT YOU TO CLIP THIS" »
FTC Charges that Auto Loan Schemes Falsely Promised They Could Stop Consumers' Cars from Being Repossessed "Hope for Car Owners" and "Auto Debt Consulting" Took Fees, But Failed to Modify Loans The Federal Trade Commission filed charges and requested that...
Continue reading "CAR OWNERS OFFERED NO HOPE" »
HHS, Department of Justice highlight Obama administration efforts, Health Reform tools to combat Medicare fraud HHS Secretary and Attorney General host seventh Regional Health Care Fraud Prevention Summit in Chicago At a Chicago summit highlighting a new high-tech war against...
Continue reading "OBAMA'S FIGHTING HEALTH CARE FRAUD" »
LIU RECOVERS $1.2 MILLION FROM BUILDING CONTRACTORS FOR CHEATED WORKERS Many Still Not Identified, Liu Urges Them to Come Forward and File Claims for Unpaid Prevailing Wages ************************************ Yesterday, Comptroller John C. Liu announced a $1.2 million settlement on behalf of...
Continue reading "LIU GETS $1.2 MILLION FOR MASCON RESTORATION'S WORKERS" »
Newman Ferrara LLP Pursues Securities Fraud Claims Against Hyperdynamics Corporation and Reminds Investors of June 1, 2012 Deadline Newman Ferrara LLP (www.nfllp.com) has announced that a securities class action was filed on behalf of investors in Hyperdynamics Corporation ("Hyperdynamics"...
Continue reading "COULD IT GET ANY HYPER FOR HYPERDYNAMICS?" »
Got this e-mail, yesterday. This is yet another variation of those "get-broke-quick" scams that are circling the globe. (Frankly, if I'd wanted to lose money, I'd buy a lottery ticket.) * * * Yours Attn. Please Treat As Confidential...
Continue reading "PROF. KISENYI WANTS YOU TO DELETE THIS EMAIL" »
G.S. Electech Agrees to Plead Guilty to Price Fixing on Auto Parts Installed in U.S. Cars Company Also Agrees to Pay $2.75 Million Criminal Fine Toyota City, Japan-based G.S. Electech Inc. has agreed to plead guilty and to...
Continue reading "G.S. ELECTECH WAS FIXING PRICES" »
A.G. Schneiderman Issues Alert To Protect New York Homeowners From Mortgage Settlement Scams Scammers Pose As Bank Or Government Representatives To Steal Personal And Financial Information Attorney General Also Launches New Site To Provide Homeowners With Information On National Mortgage...
Continue reading "WATCH OUT FOR "MORTGAGE SETTLEMENT" SCAMS" »
SCHUMER CALLS ON FCC TO BAN UNSOLICTED THIRD PARTY CRAMMING CHARGES ON CELL PHONES; SCAMMERS PUTTING SERVICES LIKE JOKE OF THE DAY, UPDATED SPORTS SCORES ON PHONES WITHOUT CONSUMERS' CONSENT AND BILLING THEM FOR IT Verizon, AT&T Recently Agreed to...
Continue reading "CRAMMING DOWN ON CRAMMERS" »
LIU, PENSION FUNDS PRESS PHARMA GIANT TO STOP SHIELDING EXECUTIVE BONUSES FROM FINANCIAL PENALTIES Shareholders call for Abbott Labs' executives to be held financially accountable for Medicare fraud and other costly settlements in resolution announced at this week's Council of...
Continue reading "ABBOTT LABS SHOULDN'T GIVE BONUSES " »
FTC Case Against Deceptive Robocallers Leads to Record $30 Million in Civil Penalties Cash Grant Institute Called Consumers on the Do Not Call Registry, Promised Cash Grants That Didn't Exist In response to charges by the Federal Trade Commission, a...
Continue reading "CASH GRANT INSTITUTE TO LOSE $30 MILLION CASH" »
Got this over the weekend. It's another variation of those lottery/prize/award e-mail scams that are circling the globe. Responder beware! * * * Greetings, I know you will be surprised to read my email. I got...
Continue reading "YOU'RE A FOOL IF YOU RESPOND TO THIS" »
FTC Takes Action Against Bogus Precious Metals Investment Scheme Senior Citizens Allegedly Tricked Into Buying 'Low-Risk' Investments on Credit The Federal Trade Commission took action to halt a telemarketing operation that allegedly took millions of dollars from senior citizens by...
Continue reading "THIS IS PRECIOUS" »
Newman Ferrara LLP Pursues Securities Fraud Claims Against China Sky One Medical, Inc. and Reminds Investors of April 24, 2012 Deadline Newman Ferrara LLP (www.nfllp.com) announced yesterday that a securities class action was filed on behalf of investors in...
Continue reading "ON SUING CHINA SKY ONE MEDICAL" »
Audit Prompts Felony Charges Against Bombay Fire Company President Comptroller's Office Uncovered More Than $67,000 in Missing Funds Former Bombay Fire Company president Bridget Martin was charged with forgery and offering a false instrument for filing by the New...
Continue reading "FIRE COMPANY'S PRESIDENT STOLE OVER $67,000" »
Received this e-mail over the weekend: * * * Anti-Terrorist and Monetary Crimes Division FBI Headquarters in Washington, D.C. Federal Bureau Of Investigation J. Edgar Hoover Building 935 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, D.C. 20535-0001 Attn: Beneficiary, This is to Officially...
Continue reading "NIGERIA IS HOLDING $12,500,000 OF MY MONEY!" »
A.G. Schneiderman Announces $4 Million Settlement With New York Foreclosure Law Firm Steven J. Baum P.C. And Pillar Processing LLC Top Two Attorneys At Firm, Steven J. Baum and Brian Kumiega, Barred From Representing Lenders Or Servicers In New...
Continue reading "FORECLOSURE LAWYERS GET HIT WITH PENALTIES" »
FTC Legal Action Halts Alleged Mortgage Relief Scammers Who Lured Homeowners with Bogus Claims Defendants Falsely Promised They Could Help Desperate Consumers Who Joined Group Lawsuits Against Their Lenders At the request of the Federal Trade Commission, a U.S. district...
Continue reading "MORTGAGE-RELIEF SCAMMERS WILL NEED SOME RELIEF OF THEIR OWN" »
LIU AUDIT: MANAGEMENT OF 911 CALL CENTER PROJECT WAS INEFFECTIVE -Absentee management led to delays, cost overruns and abandoned priorities - ****************************************** City Comptroller John C. Liu released an audit that found the Emergency Communications Transformation Program (ECTP) has suffered...
Continue reading "LIU CALLS OUT 911: A BILLION BUCKS LOST" »
Peter Voutsas intended to sue his former partners for fraud after their company was dissolved back in May of 1996. But some three years later, when he filed for bankruptcy, Peter neglected to list that claim as an "asset." When...
Continue reading "ON THE TO-DO LIST?" »
Orchard Park Fire District Improperly Created and Subsidized Private Emergency Medical Service The Orchard Park Fire District lacked authority to finance the formation and operations of a not-for-profit corporation it set up to provide emergency rescue and first aid...
Continue reading "HOW NOT TO SPEND $1.3 MILLION" »
LIU: EDC SUBSIDIZES EMPTY JOB PROMISES Audit finds agency responsible for economic growth doles out a half-billion in tax breaks and benefits each year, but gave $318 million to companies that didn't deliver the promised jobs ************************************ Yesterday, City Comptroller...
Continue reading "EMPTY PROMISES COST CITY $318 MILLION" »
MAYOR BLOOMBERG AND INVESTIGATIONS COMMISSIONER GILL HEARN ANNOUNCE $500 MILLION PAYMENT BY PRIME CITYTIME CONTRACTOR SAIC TO SETTLE CITY'S CLAIMS Settlement Recoups Most of the Funds Paid by the City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and Department of Investigation Commissioner Rose...
Continue reading "SAIC GETS SACKED FOR $500 MILLION" »
FTC Action Leads to Court Order Shutting Down Pyramid Scam Thousands of Consumers Burned by BurnLounge At the request of the Federal Trade Commission, a U.S. district court judge has ordered the operators and top promoters of a deceptive...
Continue reading "BURNLOUNGE GETS BURNED" »
FTC Issues Report on the Experiences of Victims Recovering from Identity Theft The Federal Trade Commission issued a staff report summarizing the results of a survey of identity theft victims who were asked to describe their experiences dealing with...
Continue reading "IDENTITY THEFT VICTIMS ARE SATISFIED WITH THE PROCESS?" »
A.G. Schneiderman Secures Settlement With Home Depot For Selling Trailers Without Brakes Home Depot Agrees To Pay $100,000 As Part Of Settlement Agreement Schneiderman: Home Depot Falsely Advertised Products That Threatened Public Safety As part of National Consumer Week,...
Continue reading "HOME DEPOT SOLD TRASHY TRAILERS" »
FTC Stops Scheme That Falsely Promised Federal Jobs Defendants Allegedly Sold Job Seekers Exam Prep Services for Non-Existent Vacancies The Federal Trade Commission and the State of Arizona halted an operation that took consumers' money by allegedly holding out false...
Continue reading "NO MORE GOVERNMENT CAREERS?" »
A.G. Schneiderman Issues Consumer Alert Warning New Yorkers Of The "Grandparent Scam" Elderly Victims Across New York Lost More Than $441K To Scammers Pretending To Be Family Members In Need. Schneiderman: It's Despicable That Scammers Are Preying On Vulnerability &...
Continue reading "CAN YOU SEND ME A FEW BUCKS?" »
FTC Stops Scheme That Falsely Promised Federal Jobs Defendants Allegedly Sold Job Seekers Exam Prep Services for Non-Existent Vacancies The Federal Trade Commission and the State of Arizona halted an operation that took consumers' money by allegedly holding out false...
Continue reading "THERE WERE NO GOVERNMENT CAREERS?" »
Newman Ferrara LLP Pursues Securities Fraud Claims Against Metabolix, Inc. and Reminds Investors of April 17, 2012 Deadline NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Newman Ferrara LLP (www.nfllp.com) announces that a securities class action was filed on behalf of investors in Metabolix, Inc. ("Metabolix"...
Continue reading "METABOLIX FAILED TO TELLES ALL?" »
FTC Charges That Payday Lender Illegally Sued Debt-Burdened Consumers in South Dakota Tribal Court Without Jurisdiction Agency Expands Its Case Against Payday Financial, LLC The Federal Trade Commission expanded its case against an allegedly deceptive payday lender, charging that it...
Continue reading "PAYDAY FOR FTC?" »
A.G Schneiderman Announces 16 Arrests In Staged Automobile Accident Scheme Defendants Crashed Into Unsuspecting Drivers To Receive Fraudulent Insurance Payouts Over $400,000 In Fraudulent Billing Submitted Schneiderman: Perpetrators Of This Dangerous Scheme Will Be Brought To Justice Earlier this week,...
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State Consumer Protection Offices Many states have a consumer protection office that regulates certain industries and protects consumers who regularly use goods and services from those industries. For more information, please contact your state, county, or city government consumer protection...
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SCHUMER CALLS FOR FTC INVESTIGATION OF APPLE AND ANDROID PHONE PLATFORMS THAT ALLOW APPS TO STEAL PRIVATE PHOTOS AND ADDRESS BOOKS AND POST THEM ONLINE - WITHOUT CONSUMER'S CONSENT Reports Over the Last Week Revealed That Applications Developed for iPhones...
Continue reading "THIEVING APPS!" »
Standing at Curtis Screw Company in Buffalo, Gillibrand Calls on President to Take Action on China's Harmful Trade Practices Against WNY Auto Part Manufacturers, Announces New Legislation to Prevent Dumping by Foreign Companies Recent Reports Detail China's Policies To Gain...
Continue reading "AMERICAN AUTO PARTS INDUSTRY IS GETTING SCREWED" »
To Mark National Consumer Protection Week, A.G. Schneiderman Releases NYS Top Ten Frauds Of 2011 A.G. Provides Tips to Beat Scams, Including Internet and Credit Issues - The Top Two Frauds Schneiderman: Arming Consumers With Information Is The Best Tool...
Continue reading "SCHNEIDERMAN'S TOP 10 FRAUDS" »
The Departmental Disciplinary Committee for the First Judicial Department sought to disbar attorney Robert S. Brown after he pled guilty to obstruction of justice. In a deal reached with the U.S. Attorney's Office, Brown admitted that he had used a...
Continue reading "NO OBSTRUCTING THIS" »
National Consumer Protection Week 2012 Welcome to the fourteenth annual National Consumer Protection Week, March 4-10, 2012 and NCPW.gov, the site visited by hundreds of thousands of people in 2011. NCPW.gov, your "information destination," hosts an incredible variety of resources...
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FTC Action Leads to Court Orders Banning Marketers from Selling Vacation Packages Nationwide Vacation Prize Scheme Targeted Spanish-Speaking Consumers The operators behind a vacation prize scheme are banned from selling vacation packages under settlements with the Federal Trade Commission and...
Continue reading "TELEMARKETING TRAVEL TARGETING TERMINATED" »
A.G. Schneiderman Announces $28 Million In Settlements With Two Pharmaceutical Companies For Violating Medicaid Regulations
Dava Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Overcharged Medicaid By Misclassifying Drugs In Rebate Program
KV Pharmaceutical Company Accepted Taxpayer Money For Drugs That Did Not Qualify For...
Continue reading "TWO PHARMAS GET TASTE OF THEIR OWN MEDICINE" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN ANNOUNCES NYC RESTAURANT AND NIGHTCLUB WILL PAY $200,000 FOR RETALIATION AGAINST EMPLOYEES AND ILLEGAL LABOR PRACTICES A.G. Forces Veranda To Pay $150,000 For Wage Underpayments And $50,000 For Retaliation Against Employee Whistleblowers Schneiderman: My Office Will Aggressively Pursue...
Continue reading "VERANDA'S LABOR PRACTICES AIRED" »
DOT Fines Ticket Agent for Advertising, Code-Share Disclosure Violations The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) fined ticket agent Unister USA, also known as Flights24.com, $30,000 for violating the Department's rules on fare advertising and disclosure of code-share flights. "Protecting the...
Continue reading "WAS UNISTER BEING SINISTER?" »
DiNapoli: Elevator Maintenance Falls Short at State Colleges Schools Not Getting What They Paid For, Risking Student and Staff Safety Elevators are not receiving the preventive maintenance and inspections that companies are being paid more than $17 million to...
Continue reading "DON'T RIDE THE ELEVATORS HERE" »
Newman Ferrara LLP Pursues Securities Fraud Claims Against K12, Inc. and Reminds Investors of April 17, 2012 Deadline Newman Ferrara LLP (www.nfllp.com) announced yesterday that a securities class action was filed on behalf of investors in K12, Inc. ("K12" or the...
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Newman Ferrara LLP Pursues Securities Fraud Claims Against SAIC, Inc. and Reminds Investors of April 23, 2012 Deadline NEW YORK, February 29, 2012 (BUSINESS WIRE) - Newman Ferrara LLP (www.nfllp.com) announces that a securities class action was filed on...
Continue reading "SACKING SAIC" »
When she enrolled in the D'Youville College's Doctor of Chiropractic program, Nicole M. Enzinna thought her degree would allow her to take the licensing exam in "all states." After she graduated, Enzinna and other students learned that that wasn't the...
Continue reading "DOCTOR'S ORDERS" »
DiNapoli Launches New Fraud Detection Training Initiative for Not-for-Profits New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli yesterday announced a new training program for not-for-profit officials to help them prevent and detect fraud and protect taxpayer dollars. "New York not-for-profits manage...
Continue reading "STOPPING BAD THINGS FROM HAPPENING" »
Dallas Doctor Arrested for Alleged Role in Nearly $375 Million Health Care Fraud Scheme Office Manager for Doctor and Five Owners of Dallas-Area Home Health Agencies Also Arrested A physician and the office manager of his medical practice, along...
Continue reading "THEY STOLE $375 MILLION?" »
FTC Takes Action to Stop Massive Robocalling Operations Defendants Allegedly Made Hundreds of Millions of Illegal Prerecorded Calls to Numbers on the National Do Not Call Registry As part of the Federal Trade Commission's ongoing efforts to crack down on...
Continue reading "FTC STIFLED THEIR VOICES" »
Houston Patient Recruiter Convicted in $1.1 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme To Date, Five Individuals Guilty of Federal Crimes for Roles in Scheme A patient recruiter for a Houston durable medical equipment (DME) company was convicted today by a federal...
Continue reading "TURNER TURNED FOR HEALTH CARE FRAUD" »
DiNapoli: Former Welfare Fraud IG Investigator Convicted of Stealing $5,000 A former investigator with the State Welfare Inspector General's Office pleaded guilty to illegally obtaining unclaimed funds following an investigation launched by New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli. Gabriel...
Continue reading "FRAUD INVESTIGATOR WAS FRAUD PERPETRATOR?" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN SECURES $2 MILLION IN SETTLEMENT WITH COMPANIES THAT TRICKED CONSUMERS INTO SIGNING UP FOR ONLINE DISCOUNT CLUBS WITH HIDDEN FEES Vertrue And Adaptive Marketing To Pay $2 Million In Refunds To New Yorkers Who Were Duped While...
Continue reading "WILL ADAPTIVE ADAPT THEIR MARKETING PRACTICES?" »
FTC Halts Deceptive Practices of Marketer Who Collected $359 Million Using Bogus 'Free' Trial Offers Settlements Ban Defendants From Using 'Negative-Option' Marketing The Federal Trade Commission has stopped an Internet scheme that allegedly used bogus "free" product offers that deceived...
Continue reading "NOTHING FREE ABOUT THESE FREE-TRIAL OFFERS" »
FTC Offers Warning, Advice on Tax-Related Identity Theft Did you know that your Social Security number can help an identity thief get a job, or the tax refund that should be yours? The Federal Trade Commission, the nation's consumer...
Continue reading "THEY WANT YOUR TAX REFUND" »
Licensing Food cart permit should not be renewed based upon false statements in application. In a revocation proceeding, a food cart owner was charged with falsely stating in her renewal applications that only she or her son would vend from...
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COMPTROLLER LIU LAUNCHES 212-NO-WASTE HOTLINE ****************************************** City Comptroller John C. Liu has launched 212-NO-WASTE, a hotline for City employees, contractors, and members of the public to report wasteful spending by City agencies. The hotline, unveiled as part of Liu's...
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AS RX ABUSE RISES, A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN ANNOUNCES PRISON SENTENCE FOR WOMAN WHO FORGED MORE THAN 250 PAINKILLER PRESCRIPTIONS Ringleader Sentenced To 4 - 8 Years In Prison And Ordered To Pay $200,000 To The State A.G. Schneiderman's I-STOP Plan...
Continue reading "SCRIP FORGER GETS 4-8" »
Online Dating Scams: Buyers Beware Posted: 02/14/2012 11:50 am Ann Brenoff ann.brenoff@huffingtonpost.com Online dating services are booming businesses, and the boomers who are joining them are doing so in big numbers. People aged 50 and older represent 25...
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Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Efforts Result in Record-Breaking Recoveries Totaling Nearly $4.1 Billion Largest Sum Ever Recovered in Single Year Yesterday, Attorney General Eric Holder and Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius released a...
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New York Man Arrested on Identity Theft and Tax Fraud Charges Gary Rogers, of East Meadow, N.Y., was arrested today after being charged with identity theft and tax fraud after filing more than 200 false tax returns with the Internal...
Continue reading "WHAT HAPPENED TO THE $4 MILLION?" »
FTC Action Leads to Ban on Alleged Mortgage Relief Scammers Who Harmed Thousands of Consumers Defendant Ordered to Surrender Yacht, Cadillac, and Rolex At the request of the Federal Trade Commission, a U.S. district court put the mortgage relief business...
Continue reading "FTC FORECLOSES MORTGAGE SCAMMERS" »
Maryland Company Settles Pesticides Violations PAMEX Foods, Inc. of Forestville, Md., has agreed to pay a $158,880 civil penalty to settle alleged violations of federal pesticide regulations, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced today. EPA cited PAMEX for...
Continue reading "PAMEX ZAPPED FOR PESTICIDE SNAFU" »
Bank of America Subsidiary Reversing or Refunding $36 Million in Fees to Resolve FTC Allegations That it Overcharged Struggling Homeowners Excessive Default-Related Fees Allegedly Violated Earlier Countrywide Settlement A mortgage servicing subsidiary of Bank of America Corp. agreed to settle...
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FTC Shuts Down Robocallers Who Claimed to Reduce Credit Card Interest Rates Marketers Settle Charges They Deceived More Than 13,000 Consumers The Federal Trade Commission has reached a settlement with four of the defendants in an allegedly phony debt relief...
Continue reading "NO MORE DOING THE ROBOT FOR AFL" »
WITH TAX SEASON UNDERWAY, ATTORNEY GENERAL'S OFFICE ISSUES CONSUMER ALERT ON HIRING TAX PREPARERS A.G. Schneiderman Asks New Yorkers To Report Tax Preparation Scams At: 1-800-771-7755 Schneiderman: Preying On The Desperation Of People In A Tough Economy Is Unconscionable...
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Yazaki Corp., Denso Corp., and Four Yazaki Executives Agree to Plead Guilty to Automobile Parts Price-Fixing and Bid-Rigging Conspiracies Companies Agree to Pay a Total of $548 Million in Criminal Fines-Includes Second Largest Criminal Fine Ever for an Antitrust Violation;...
Continue reading "AUTO PARTS PLOY COST THEM OVER HALF A BILLION" »
FTC Action Halts Telemarketers Who Sold Bogus Credit Cards Allegedly Charged Illegal Up-Front Fee, Took Consumers' Money Without Their Consent At the request of the Federal Trade Commission, a federal judge has temporarily halted a telemarketing operation that allegedly sold...
Continue reading "PLATINUM TRUST WASN'T SO TRUSTWORTHY" »
Newman Ferrara LLP Pursues Securities Fraud Claims Against Netflix, Inc. and Reminds Investors of March 13, 2012 Deadline NEW YORK, February 3, 2012 (BUSINESS WIRE) - Newman Ferrara LLP (www.nfllp.com) announced today that a securities class action was filed...
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A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN ANNOUNCES ARREST OF GARMENT FACTORY OWNER FOR WITNESS TAMPERING Rafoul Abouhamra, Owner Of Ell & H, Inc., Tampered With A Witness Before A Hearing On Wages Owed To Workers Schneiderman: Witness Tampering Is A Crime And My Office...
Continue reading "GARMENTO GETS A GOING OVER" »
FTC Settlement Bans Billing Scheme Operators from Negative-Option Sales Defendants Ordered to Pay Almost $10 Million; Billed Consumers Without Their Consent The Federal Trade Commission has stopped an operation that targeted payday loan seekers and charged them for worthless programs...
Continue reading "MONEYMAKER LOSES MILLIONS" »
Prepaid Phone Card Marketers Agree to Pay $2.32 Million to Settle FTC Charges Cards Failed to Deliver the Advertised Minutes An operation that marketed prepaid calling cards to immigrants has agreed to pay $2.32 million as part of a settlement...
Continue reading "DID PREPAID PHONE CARD COMPANIES PREPAY THIS SETTLEMENT?" »
Former Owner of Florida-Based Airline Services Company Sentenced to Prison for Conspiring to Defraud Illinois-Based Ryan International Airlines A former owner and operator of a Florida-based airline services company was sentenced last week to serve 24 months in prison...
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A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN RECOVERS OVER $700K FOR TAXPAYERS IN CENTRAL NEW YORK MEDICAID WHISTLEBLOWER CASE Cayuga Medical Center To Pay For Violating Federal Law Schneiderman: Settlement Sheds Light On The Practice of Questionable Physician Recruitment Agreements [En Español] --> ...
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FTC Permanently Stops Six Operators from Using Fake News Sites that Allegedly Deceived Consumers about Acai Berry Weight-Loss Products Alleged Fraudulent Affiliate Marketers will Surrender Assets under Settlements Six online marketers agreed to settlements with the Federal Trade Commission that...
Continue reading "THIS AIN'T FAKE NEWS" »
New Mexico Man Indicted for Using Stolen Identities to Obtain Tax Refunds Douglas J. Kuester of Silver City, N.M., was arrested yesterday on identity theft and tax fraud charges, the Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced. A...
Continue reading "IRS IS LOOKING FOR A REFUND" »
Miami-Area Nurse Pleads Guilty in $25 Million Health Care Fraud Scheme A Miami-area nurse pleaded guilty for his participation in a $25 million home health Medicare fraud scheme, the Department of Justice, the FBI and the Department of...
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DOT Fines Two Airlines for Violating Price Advertising Rules The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) fined Asiana Airlines, a carrier based in the Republic of Korea, and LOT Polish Airlines for violating federal aviation laws and the Department's rules prohibiting...
Continue reading "ASIANA AIRLINES ADMITS ADVERTISING AUDACIOUSNESS" »
Federal Trade Commission, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Pledge to Work Together to Protect Consumers Memorandum of Understanding Creates Framework for Strong Coordination and Cooperation The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) have signed an agreement...
Continue reading "ANOTHER COP ON THE BEAT?" »
Comptroller DiNapoli Releases Municipal Audits On Friday New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli announced his office completed the audit of the Kendall Central School District. "My office's audits of school districts and BOCES help schools improve their financial management...
Continue reading "ORLEANS COUNTY PLAYED WITH THE NUMBERS" »
Former Chicago Lawyer Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Mortgage Fraud Involving at Least 102 Fraudulent Bailouts A former Chicago lawyer was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison for engaging in mortgage and bankruptcy fraud schemes...
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DOT Fines Icelandair for Violating Price Advertising Rules The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) fined Icelandair $50,000 for violating federal aviation laws and the Department's rules prohibiting deceptive price advertising in air travel. "When consumers book a flight, they...
Continue reading "ICELANDAIR GETS ICED" »
IG Report: Follow-up: Individuals Receiving Benefits Under Multiple SSNs at Different Addresses The Social Security Administration (SSA) has assessed approximately $2.9 million in overpayments to 46 beneficiaries who inappropriately received benefits under multiple Social Security Numbers (SSN) at...
Continue reading "GOT MORE THAN ONE SSN?" »
FTC Action Stops Marketer in Precious Metals Investment Case Allegedly Tricked Consumers Into Buying High-Fee, Risky Investments on Credit At the request of the Federal Trade Commission, a federal judge stopped the allegedly illegal practices of a defendant who helped...
Continue reading "PRECIOUS OF AMERICAN PRECIOUS METALS" »
Former Dow Research Scientist Sentenced to 60 Months in Prison for Stealing Trade Secrets and Perjury A former research scientist was sentenced late last week to 60 months in prison for stealing trade secrets from Dow Chemical Company and selling...
Continue reading "IN LIU OF WHAT?" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN ANNOUNCES ARREST OF FORMER SCHENECTADY BUILDER FOR MORTGAGE FRAUD Angelo Rossi Extradited From Florida On Felony Charges For Stealing Over $640K Schneiderman: My Office Will Go After Unscrupulous Individuals And Bring Them To Justice Last week,...
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CVS Caremark Corporation Settles FTC Deceptive Pricing Charges Many Seniors and Disabled Consumers Hit With Higher Prices for Prescription Drugs CVS Caremark Corporation will pay $5 million to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that it misrepresented the prices of certain...
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While working at Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe, Patrick Hoeffner was offered a position with a smaller, competing firm, but was supposedly induced to stay by a promise he would soon make partner. When he was later terminated, both the New...
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A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN ANNOUNCES SEVEN ARRESTS IN IDENTITY THEFT SCHEME THAT HIJACKED OVER 180 CUSTOMER ACCOUNTS AT NYC RETAIL STORES More Than $1 Million in Merchandise, Gift Cards, And Store Credits Fraudulently Obtained At Home Depot, Sears, Kmart, Kohl's And Other...
Continue reading "IDENTITY THIEVES IDENTIFIED" »
Los Angeles Church Pastor Sentenced to 180 Months in Prison for $14.2 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme One of the Longest Health Care Fraud Sentences Imposed in the Central District of California The pastor of a now defunct Los Angeles church...
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A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN ANNOUNCES $325,000 MEDICAID FRAUD SETTLEMENT WITH ERIE COUNTY DENTAL CLINIC Audit Uncovered Dental Center Accepted Fraudulent Overpayments For Medically Unnecessary Procedures In Violation Of Medicaid Rules Schneiderman: My Office Is Dedicated To Recovering Taxpayer Dollars Misspent Through...
Continue reading "WAS THIS LIKE PULLING TEETH?" »
DiNapoli: Pension Cuts for Former DOCS Boss who Cheated State State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli's office is recalculating the pension of a former director at the state Department of Correctional Services (DOCS) after an investigation by DiNapoli's office found...
Continue reading "17 YEARS OF FRIDAYS" »
DiNapoli: Harrietstown Officials Mismanaged Capital Projects at Adirondack Regional Airport Harrietstown officials did not provide adequate oversight of capital projects at its Adirondack Regional Airport in Franklin County, leaving a $200,000 hole in the town's general fund, according to...
Continue reading "HARRIETSTOWN'S GOT A $200,000 HOLE" »
Internet Marketers of Acai Berry Weight-Loss Pills and "Colon Cleansers" to Pay $1.5 Million to Settle FTC Charges of Deceptive Advertising and Unfair Billing The Federal Trade Commission announced that an operation that marketed acai berry supplements, "colon cleansers," and...
Continue reading "THIS CLEANSING COST OVER A MILLION BUCKS" »
Austin, Texas, Man Pleads Guilty to Bankruptcy Fraud and Identity Theft in Connection with Nationwide Foreclosure-rescue Scheme Defendant Collected $1.6 Million from 1,100 Distressed Homeowners An Austin, Texas, man pleaded guilty last week in the Western District of Texas for his role...
Continue reading "POKEY FOR PHONY BANKRUPTCIES" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN ANNOUNCES ARREST OF QUEENS EMPLOYERS FOR FAILING TO PAY THEIR WORKERS Queens Restaurant Owners Did Not Pay Employees Wages For Weeks And Months Schneiderman: Failing To Pay Wages Is A Crime And Lawbreakers Will Be Held Accountable...
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FTC Action Bans Payment Processor from Using a Novel Payment Method to Debit Accounts Allegedly Debited Millions of Dollars from Consumers' Bank Accounts Without Their Consent A payment processor and two of its principals are now banned from using a...
Continue reading "WAS LANDMARK CLEARING CLEARLY STEALING?" »
Wells Fargo Bank was sued because it allegedly represented to Randall Newman that his property would be treated as a two-family, rather than a one-family, home for financing purposes. But neither the New York County Supreme Court nor the Appellate Division,...
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A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN ANNOUNCES GUILTY PLEA FOR BRONX EMPLOYER WHO RETALIATED AGAINST WORKERS AND DEFRAUDED THE STATE Owner Of Recycling Company Fired Workers For Cooperating With Department Of Labor Investigation Company Failed To Pay Workers Minimum Wage & Filed Fraudulent Records...
Continue reading "CAN THIS RECYCLER'S REPUTATION BE RECLAIMED?" »
Membership Reward Service Aimed at College Savers Settles FTC Charges That Its 'TurboSaver Toolbar' Feature Deceptively Collected Consumers' Personal Information A membership reward service aimed at consumers trying to save money for college has agreed to settle FTC charges and...
Continue reading "UPROMISE BROKE PRIVACY PROMISE" »
Free Monthly Legal Clinic for Tenants I am pleased to join with Eviction Intervention Services to offer a free monthly legal clinic for tenants. If your landlord is harassing you or threatening you with eviction, or is refusing to make...
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DOT Fines AirTran Airways for Violating Price Advertising Rules The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) today fined AirTran Airways $60,000 for violating federal aviation laws and the Department's rules prohibiting deceptive price advertising in air travel. "Consumers have a right...
Continue reading "AIRTRAN GETS A $60,000 TICKET" »
Former Department of Defense Employee Sentenced to 30 Months in Prison for Submitting False Travel Claims Totaling Nearly $500,000 A former civilian employee of the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology (AFIP), a component of the Department of Defense, was...
Continue reading "DID THIS DEFENSE EMPLOYEE TRIP OUT?" »
Store security guards contacted the police after Calvin Shands and a friend were observed randomly collect merchandise and behaving "in an unusually nervous manner" when Shands's credit card was declined while at a check-out counter. In response to a store...
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OFFICE OF ATTORNEY GENERAL UNVEILS YEAR-END REVIEW FOR WESTERN NEW YORK Review Cites Progress For New York On Taxpayer Protection, Public Safety, Economic Justice, Public Integrity, Civil Rights & Environmental Protection The Office of Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman...
Continue reading "SCHNEIDERMAN REFLECTS ON SOME ACCOMPLISHMENTS" »
Even though Bryant Installations (BI) failed to respond to a fraud and breach of contract lawsuit filed by the Church of South India Malayalam Congregation, the Nassau County Supreme Court refused to enter a default judgment against the company. Since...
Continue reading "APPEARANCES DON'T MATTER?" »
California Federal Court Blocks Bogus Tax Credit Scheme Orange County Man Falsely Claimed to Have Billions of Dollars of Tax Credits to Sell A federal court in Los Angeles has permanently barred Lamar Ellis of Brea, Calif., from promoting...
Continue reading "DISCREDITED RESEARCH CREDITS" »
Pennsylvania Husband and Wife Sentenced to Prison for Fraudulent Commercial Driver's Licenses Scheme A Pennsylvania husband and wife were sentenced to 30 months and 24 months in prison, respectively, for their participation in a scheme to provide out-of-state residents with...
Continue reading "COUPLE DIDN'T HAVE LICENSE TO STEAL" »
Fourteen Citizens of Romania Charged with Participating in Internet Phishing Scheme Late last week, David B. Fein, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Kimberly K. Mertz, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of...
Continue reading "30 YEARS FOR PHISHING?" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN ANNOUNCES SETTLEMENT WITH BANK OF NEW YORK MELLON FOR FACILITATING THE MANIPULATIVE TRADING OF AUCTION RATE SECURITIES Company Will Pay $1.3 Million for Violating Martin Act BNY Mellon Enabled an Issuer to Conceal Its Identity and Manipulate...
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FTC Accepts Final Settlement with Online Advertiser Scan Scout, Which Allegedly Used Flash Cookies to Track Consumers Following a public comment period, the Federal Trade Commission has finalized a settlement order with online advertiser ScanScout, which the FTC alleged...
Continue reading "SCANSCOUT'S HONOR IS ON THE LINE" »
AS Rx ABUSE RISES, A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN SECURES PRISON TIME FOR WOMAN WHO FORGED MORE THAN 250 PAINKILLER PRESCRIPTIONS Bronx Resident Forged Scripts On Prescription Paper Stolen From NYC Hospitals Counterfeit Prescriptions For Often-Abused Painkillers Like OxyContin Filled In 20 Counties...
Continue reading "SHE FORGED OVER 250 PRESCRIPTIONS" »
FTC Stops Marketers From Selling Phony Fuel Economy Devices The Federal Trade Commission reached a settlement putting a stop to the phony claims of marketers who told consumers their fuel economy device could boost automobile gas mileage by at...
Continue reading "NO BOOST FOR THE HYDRO-ASSIST FUEL CELL" »
SCHUMER WARNS OF NEW GIFT CARD SCAM THAT COULD LEAVE RECIPIENT WITH ZERO BALANCE WHEN THEY GET THEIR GIFT CARD AS PRESENT ON CHRISTMAS MORNING; CALLS ON RETAILERS AND CUSTOMERS TO ACT QUICKLY TO PREVENT BEING SCAMMED Gift Card Scams...
Continue reading "GIFT CARDS: RUNNING ON EMPTY" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN RELEASES CHARITIES FUNDRAISING REPORT AND ISSUES TIPS TO NEW YORKERS DONATING THIS HOLIDAY SEASON Professional For-Profit "Telemarketers" Keep 63 Percent of Money Raised; Fewer Than 37 Cents Per Dollar Go To Charity AG's Provides Consumer Tips, Online...
Continue reading "DON'T BE TOO CHARITABLE WITH YOUR MONEY" »
Campaign to cut waste: Vice President Biden announces U.S. will halt production of excess dollar coins and Department of Justice recovered a record $5.6 billion in fraud in 2011 Department of Health and Human Services takes new steps to prevent...
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Retired Army Major Sentenced to 24 Months in Prison for Engaging in Money Laundering Related to Contracting in Support of Iraq War Defendant Accepted $400,000 Related to the Award of a Bottled Water Contract in Kuwait A retired major...
Continue reading "MONEY LAUNDERING COST HIM 24 MONTHS" »
Identity Thief Sentenced in Virginia to 12 Years in Prison for Managing East Coast Credit Card Fraud Ring A Brooklyn, N.Y., man was sentenced last week in U.S. District Court in Alexandria, Va., to 12 years in prison for operating a...
Continue reading "YOU CAN'T GIVE THIS GUY ANY CREDIT" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN ANNOUNCES MULTI-MILLION DOLLAR FUNDRAISING COMPANY BARRED FROM NY FOR CHARITY SCAM Undercover Investigation Showed Telemarketers Routinely Lied to Donors During High-Pressure Calls Schneiderman: My Office Will Not Tolerate the Exploitation of Generous New Yorkers On Friday, Attorney General...
Continue reading "STAGE LEFT FOR STAGE DOOR MUSIC" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN ANNOUNCES $58.75 MILLION SETTLEMENT WITH WACHOVIA Multistate Investigation Finds National Abuses In Municipal Bond Derivatives Market Defrauded Governments & Nonprofits In NY & Nationally Entitled To Millions In Restitution Yesterday, Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman announced a...
Continue reading "WACHOVIA TO WHACK UP $58.75 MILLION" »
A.G. Schneiderman and Comptroller DiNapoli Announce Indictments of Four in Member Item Theft Scheme First Legal Action Resulting From Groundbreaking Joint Public Integrity Initiative Ongoing Criminal Investigation Exposes Sham Charity With Ties To State Senator & Staff More Than...
Continue reading "THEFT OF $29K COULD BUY THEM JAIL" »
Seven Charged in in Florida in $120 Million National Tax Fraud Scheme Seven individuals have been charged with participating in filing false tax returns that resulted in a $120 million tax fraud scheme, the Justice Department announced yesterday. ...
Continue reading "HOW NOT TO STEAL $120 MILLION" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN ANNOUNCES SENTENCINGS FOR MULTI-STATE MORTGAGE FRAUD SCHEME Five Individuals Will Spend Time Behind Bars For Their Roles In Mortgage Scams Schneiderman: Rivertown Financial Services Preyed on Homeowners in Financial Distress Leaving Some Evicted From Their Own Homes...
Continue reading "MORTGAGE SCAMMER HEADS UP THE RIVER" »
Two New Jersey Men Charged for Trafficking in Counterfeit Perfume Two New Jersey men were charged in an indictment unsealed on Dec. 1, 2011, in the Eastern District of New York for their roles in a conspiracy to import...
Continue reading "LOOK WHAT COUNTERFEIT PERFUME COST THEM" »
SCHUMER CALLS FOR BETTER DISCLOSURE TO CLEARLY NOTIFY LONG ISLAND DRIVERS THAT THEY COULD PAY UP TO 10 CENTS MORE A GALLON WHEN THEY USE A CREDIT CARD TO PAY FOR GAS; LONG ISLANDERS OFTEN DO NOT KNOW THEY COULD...
Continue reading "HE WON'T LET THEM PUMP YOU UP" »
FTC Action Temporarily Halts Operation that Allegedly Used Fake News Sites to Make Deceptive Claims about Acai Berry Weight-Loss Products As part of its ongoing crackdown on deceptive health claims, the Federal Trade Commission has filed a complaint jointly...
Continue reading "THIS AIN'T FAKE NEWS ABOUT ACAI BERRY" »
New York State Assemblyman William F. Boyland, Jr. Charged with Bribery and Attempted Hobbs Act Extortion Recordings Capture Boyland Soliciting More Than $250,000 in Bribes, Accepting Thousands in Bribes Solicited and Accepted Following Earlier Bribery Arrest Loretta E. Lynch, United...
Continue reading "CARNIVAL HAWKER?" »
Former Massachusetts Scientist and Businessman Sentenced to Prison for Federal Grant Fraud A former Massachusetts scientist and businessman was sentenced on Tuesday by U.S. District Judge Rya W. Zobel in Boston to one year and one day in federal...
Continue reading "SCIENTIST GETS YEAR IN PRISON " »
Facebook Settles FTC Charges That It Deceived Consumers By Failing To Keep Privacy Promises The social networking service Facebook has agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that it deceived consumers by telling them they could keep their information...
Continue reading "FACEBOOK SAVES FACE?" »
Federal Courts Order Seizure of 150 Website Domains Involved in Selling Counterfeit Goods as Part of DOJ, ICE HSI and FBI Cyber Monday Crackdown Seizure orders have been executed against 150 domain names of commercial websites engaged in the...
Continue reading "CYBER MONDAY COPYRIGHT/COUNTERFEIT CRACKDOWN" »
FTC Requires Three Internet Marketers to Stop Selling "Circle" Cosmetic Contact Lenses without Prescriptions as Part of Settlement Three Internet marketers of cosmetic, "circle" contact lenses have agreed to resolve Federal Trade Commission charges by entering into settlements that...
Continue reading "FTC CIRCLES IN ON THESE GUYS" »
Tennessee Man Sentenced to 40 Months in Prison for Fraudulent Hedge Fund Scheme Man Previously Convicted for Securities Fraud in 2007 Jon Edward Hankins, 38, of Knoxville, Tenn., was sentenced to prison last week by U.S. District Judge...
Continue reading "THIS MAN HAS NO TENET" »
Buy and Use Gift Cards Wisely This Holiday Season Last week, State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli reminded state residents to pay special attention to fees and expiration dates when purchasing gift cards this holiday season. In addition, gift cards received...
Continue reading "WATCH THEM GIFT CARDS" »
Detroit-Area Foot Doctor Pleads Guilty to Medicare Fraud Scheme A Detroit-area foot doctor pleaded guilty today for his participation in a Medicare fraud scheme, announced the Department of Justice, FBI and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)....
Continue reading "FOOT DOCTOR GETS KICKED" »
FTC Adds Defendant in Case Against Allegedly Bogus Precious Metals Dealers The Federal Trade Commission has named an additional defendant as part of its case against a telemarketing operation that allegedly conned senior citizens into buying precious metals on...
Continue reading "ISN'T THIS PRECIOUS?" »
Substance Abuse Provider Misspent $1 Million A provider of substance abuse prevention and treatment services overcharged the state for services, used taxpayer money to pay for inappropriate perks for the company's CEO and staffers, including tuition, beauty supplies and...
Continue reading "DON'T PIGS GET SLAUGHTERED?" »
MAYOR BLOOMBERG ANNOUNCES SUIT AGAINST "ROLL-YOUR-OWN" CIGARETTE BUSINESSES EVADING TAXES Stores Claim to Neither Manufacture nor Sell Cigarettes, Yet Customers Walk Out of Stores with Finished Cigarettes without Paying Full Taxes On Monday, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg announced the...
Continue reading "BLOOMBERG SMOKES OUT CIGARETTE TAX EVADERS" »
Former Alabama Corrections Officer Pleads Guilty to Violating the Civil Rights of an Inmate Last week, rhe Justice Department announced that Scottie T. Glenn, 28, a former corrections officer of the Alabama Department of Corrections, pleaded guilty in U.S....
Continue reading "CORRECTIONS OFFICER WILL TAKE A BEATING OF HIS OWN" »
Virginia Store Owner Pleads Guilty to Trafficking in Counterfeit Goods Belal Amin Alsaidi, 30, of Buffalo, N.Y., pleaded guilty on Tuesday to trafficking in counterfeit goods, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department's Criminal Division and U.S....
Continue reading "COUNTERFEIT GOODS COULD COST HIM TEN YEARS" »
FTC Wins $29.8 Million Judgment in Bogus Government Grant Case Court Also Bans Defendants from Marketing Numerous Products and Services Related to Their Alleged Scam On Monday, the Federal Trade Commission has won a $29.8 million judgment against the remaining...
Continue reading "GRANT (DIS)CONNECT" »
Forensic Audit of MTA Reveals Systemic Overtime Abuse at Metro-North Railroad Unit Supervisors and workers at a Signal Construction Unit at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's (MTA) Metro-North Hudson and Harlem Line have manipulated the payroll system by abusing overtime...
Continue reading "MTA PERSONNEL PADDED PAYROLL" »
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Charges Seven Individuals for Engineering Sophisticated Internet Fraud Scheme That Infected Millions of Computers Worldwide and Manipulated Internet Advertising Business Malware Secretly Re-Routed More Than 4 Million Computers, Generating at Least $14 Million in Fraudulent Advertising Fees...
Continue reading "ESTONIAN CYBER HIJACKERS FACE THE SLAMMER" »
New York Resident Sentenced in Miami in Connection with Fraudulent Business Opportunity Schemes Michael Eisenberg, a resident of Long Island, N.Y., was sentenced Monday in connection with a series of fraudulent business opportunity ventures, the Justice Department and the...
Continue reading "NUCLEAR VENDING SCAM" »
DEC EMPLOYEE FALSIFIED TIME SHEETS Biologist Claimed to be Working While Drinking at Albany BarA biologist with the state Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) routinely went drinking at a local bar and restaurant during the workday instead of performing his...
Continue reading "DRINKING WASN'T WORKING" »
Online Advertiser Settles FTC Charges ScanScout Deceptively Used Flash Cookies to Track Consumers Online Online advertiser ScanScout has agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that it deceptively claimed that consumers could opt out of receiving targeted ads by...
Continue reading "SCANSCOUT'S COOKIES CRUMBLE" »
Triton President and CEO Kurt Barton Sentenced to Federal Prison On Friday, the United States Attorney's Office announced that in Austin, 44-year-old Kurt Branham Barton, founder, president, and CEO of Triton Financial, L.L.C., was sentenced to 17 years...
Continue reading "COURT HITS TRITON WITH 17-YEAR PRISON TERM" »
Manhattan U.S. Attorney and FBI Assistant Director in Charge Announce Charges Against Former President and Former Finance Director of One of the World's Largest Outdoor Advertising Companies for $19.75 Million Accounting Fraud Scheme Yesterday, PREET BHARARA, the United States...
Continue reading "AD EXECS COOKED BOOKS" »
Attorney General and Comptroller Team Up To Ensure Proper Payment of Life Insurance Benefits Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman and State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli yesterday announced a new initiative to ensure that New Yorkers receive any unpaid life...
Continue reading "LIFE INSURANCE COMPANIES NEED TO PONY UP!" »
In FTC 'Hoodia' Weight Loss Case, Settlement Requires Defendants to Turn Over Assets One is Banned from Marketing Dietary Supplements, Another from Making Weight-loss Claims As part of its ongoing efforts to stop bogus health claims, the Federal Trade Commission...
Continue reading "HOODIA HUCKSTERS HALTED" »
Clerk-Treasurer Allegedly Stole $18,378 from Village of Wampsville Wampsville's clerk-treasurer allegedly took $18,378 by writing herself extra paychecks and pocketing cash payments from residents, according to an audit released today by State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli. "This treasurer brazenly pocketed...
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Lucchese Organized Crime Family Member and Associate Among 13 Arrested, Charged for Racketeering and Other Offenses, Including Illegal Takeover of Publicly Traded Company Attorneys and Accountant Also Charged as Members of Racketeering Enterprise Thirteen individuals, including an alleged...
Continue reading "LOOK WHAT THE FAMILY DID NOW" »
Caribbean Airlines Fined for Improperly Limiting Reimbursements for Delayed Baggage Last week, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) fined Caribbean Airlines, a carrier based in Trinidad and Tobago, $60,000 for limiting reimbursements for lost, damaged and delayed baggage to...
Continue reading "PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN (AIRLINES)" »
Former Owners of Florida Airline Fuel Supply and Indiana Flight Management Services Companies Sentenced to Prison for Conspiring to Defraud Ryan International Airlines A former owner and operator of a Florida-based airline fuel supply service company and a former...
Continue reading "AIRLINE FUEL SCAM GETS GROUNDED" »
OFFICE OF ATTORNEY GENERAL ISSUES CONSUMER ALERT FOR HIRING SNOWPLOW CONTRACTORS Attorney General Offers Tips On How To Avoid Unscrupulous Contractors Consumers Should Report Fraud At: 800-771-7755 [En Español] --> As the winter months begin to set in,...
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Jason James Savedoff Pleads Guilty to Conspiring to Steal Valuable Historical Documents Original Documents of Abraham Lincoln, George Washington, John Adams, Franklin Roosevelt, and Others Stolen from Historical Societies and Museums Jason James Savedoff, a/k/a "Jason James," and "Justin...
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California Man Sentenced in Las Vegas for Filing False Liens Against Federal Employees Filed Liens Against Federal Officials for Hundreds of Millions Dollars Thanh Viet Jeremy Cao of Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif., was sentenced earlier this week in Las Vegas before...
Continue reading "PHONY LIENS COST HIM 41 MONTHS" »
After the Richmond County Supreme Court found him liable for "fraud and unjust enrichment," and directed that he pay $450,000 to Block 6222 Construction Corp., Mouhebat Sobhani appealed. But because he didn't present all of the papers which had been...
Continue reading "SOMETHING AMISS" »
DOT Fines LAN Airlines for Violating Price Advertising Rules The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) today fined LAN Airlines, a carrier based in Chile, $50,000 for violating federal aviation laws and the Department's rules prohibiting deceptive price advertising in air...
Continue reading "LAN LANDS UP FINED" »
At FTC's Request, Court Orders Debt Collection Operation to Stop Deceiving and Abusing Consumers FTC Alleges that Defendants Targeted English- and Spanish-Speaking Consumers, Posing As Process Servers and Attorneys At the request of the Federal Trade Commission, a U.S. district...
Continue reading "RINCON DEBT MANAGEMENT MANAGES TO GET INTO TROUBLE" »
Governor Cuomo Announces Roadside Inspections of Nearly 1,200 Buses Removed Over 200 Unsafe Drivers and Buses From The Road 116 Drivers and 95 Buses Taken Out of Service as Part of Two-Week Crackdown Since Governor Cuomo Launched Safety Campaign in...
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A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN CALLS ON FEDS TO PROTECT CONSUMERS FROM PHONE BILL FRAUD Joins Multistate Coalition Urging FCC To Ban "Cramming" - Unauthorized Charges On Telephone Bills States Call For Stronger Regulations On Both Landline & Wireless Phone Services [En...
Continue reading "SCHNEIDERMAN WANTS TO CRAM THIS" »
DOT Fines South African Airways and Ticket Agent for Violating Price Advertising Rules The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) yesterday fined South African Airways and ticket agent Destination Southern Africa for violating federal aviation laws and the Department's rules...
Continue reading "SOUTH AFRICA AIRWAYS FINED FOR DECEPTIVE ADS" »
Hedge Fund CEO Pleads Guilty in Manhattan Federal Court to Insider Trading Scheme That Netted Nearly $2.5 Million in Profits Denver-Based CEO Traded on Material, Non-Public Information Obtained from Mariner Energy, Inc. Board Member Concerning the Company's Acquisition PREET...
Continue reading "BO BROWNSTEIN GETS THE BRIG" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN ANNOUNCES MULTI-MILLION DOLLAR SETTLEMENT WITH BANCO ESPÍRITO SANTO S.A. OVER UNREGISTERED RECOMMENDATION AND SALE OF SECURITIES Portuguese Financial Institution Will Offer To Repurchase Securities Sold, Disgorge All Profits From Conduct, And Pay $975K For Failing To Register...
Continue reading "HOLY GHOST: THIS SETTLEMENT COST 'EM MILLIONS!" »
Reebok to Pay $25 Million in Customer Refunds To Settle FTC Charges of Deceptive Advertising of EasyTone and RunTone Shoes Settlement Order Prohibits Reebok from Making Unsupported Claims that 'Toning Shoes' Strengthen, Tone Muscles In its ongoing effort to stem...
Continue reading "REEBOK GETS A $25 MILLION WORK-OUT" »
Former United Nations Employee Found Guilty of Fraud Jeffery K. Armstrong, 52, of South Riding, Va., was found guilty last week by a federal jury on nine counts of wire fraud for obtaining more than $100,000 in salary payments by fraudulently...
Continue reading "HOLDING TWO JOBS MAY GET HIM 20 YEARS" »
Court Finds Defendant in Contempt for Violating Prior Court Order That Prohibited Him from Making Credit Repair Pitches to Consumers Responding to charges by the Federal Trade Commission, a U.S. district court has found a credit repair seller in contempt...
Continue reading "PRISON PITCH?" »
Texas Resident Sentenced to 24 Months in Prison for Scheme to Defraud the U.S. Export-Import Bank An El Paso, Texas, resident was sentenced yesterday to 24 months in prison for his role in a scheme to defraud the Export-Import...
Continue reading "HE EXTORTED EXPORT-IMPORT'S CASH" »
Title Company Owner and President Pleads Guilty in $3.1 Million Mortgage Fraud Scheme James Kevin Hughes, age 53, of Crownsville, Maryland, pleaded guilty yesterday to wire fraud arising from a scheme to defraud lenders and a title insurance...
Continue reading "HE WASN'T ENTITLED TO STEAL" »
FTC Stops Nationwide Federal Jobs Scam Defendants Who Sold Information Consumers Could Get for Free Settle FTC Charges As part of the Federal Trade Commission's crackdown on scams that target consumers in financial distress, the FTC has stopped a nationwide...
Continue reading "FEDERAL JOBS SCAM?" »
FDA Chemist Pleads Guilty to Using Insider Information to Trade on Pharmaceutical Stocks Resulting in Almost $4 Million in Profits Failed to Disclose the Illicit Profits on Financial Forms A Food and Drug Administration (FDA) chemist pleaded guilty...
Continue reading "CHEMIST EARNED MILLIONS FROM INSIDE INFO" »
Virginia Contractors Plead Guilty to Kickback Scheme Yesterday, two Virginia contractors pleaded guilty to participating in a scheme to steer contracts for repair and maintenance work at healthcare and nursing home facilities owned by Medical Facilities of America Inc....
Continue reading "KICKBACK KICKS BACK" »
Bogus Government Grant Promoters Agree to Permanent Ban to Resolve FTC Charges Marketers Also Pitched Sham Products, Including Useless Credit Cards, Fake Work-at-Home Opportunities, and Worthless Dietary Supplements, According to FTC Complaint The Federal Trade Commission has stopped an operation...
Continue reading "SCAM COST HER A '67 CHEVY CAMARO" »
Avoid Fraud, Scams in the Wake of Tropical Storm Lee New York residents are urged to be alert for potential fraud during recovery and rebuilding efforts following Tropical Storm Lee, officials with the New York State Office of Emergency...
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Montgomery, Alabama, Woman Pleads Guilty to Two Tax Fraud and Identity Theft Conspiracies Multi-Million Dollar Fraud Schemes Used Stolen Information of Medicaid Recipients Veronica Dale, a resident of Montgomery, Ala., pleaded guilty last week to two tax fraud and identity...
Continue reading "PHONY IDENTITIES GOT HER MILLIONS" »
Hedge Fund Founder Raj Rajaratnam Sentenced in Manhattan Federal Court to 11 Years in Prison for Insider Trading Crimes Rajaratnam Receives Longest Prison Term in History for Insider Trading PREET BHARARA, the United States Attorney for the Southern District...
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FTC Charges Credit Repair Operators With Misleading Credit Bureaus and Charging Consumers Illegal Up-Front Fees The Federal Trade Commission has charged the operators of a credit repair company with making false statements to credit bureaus about information in consumers'...
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After they sold their property to Igor and Nelly Cherkassky, Mark and Rosa Tarantul sued to recover $40,000, which had been held in escrow pending confirmation of a tax abatement. The Cherkasskys counter-sued claiming they hadn't been sold a "newly...
Continue reading "TARANTULS' TARANTELLA" »
Fifth Guilty Plea in Connection with Scheme to Fraudulently Control Condominium Homeowners' Associations On Tuesday, a Las Vegas woman pleaded guilty today for her role in a scheme to fraudulently gain control of condominium homeowners' associations (HOA) in the...
Continue reading "CONDO CONTROL CON COSTS" »
Peer-to-Peer File-Sharing Software Developer Settles FTC Charges Default Settings in Mobile File-Sharing App Jeopardized Consumers' Personal Files Frostwire LLC, a peer-to-peer file-sharing application developer, has agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that its software likely would cause consumers to...
Continue reading "FTC PEERS INTO FROSTWIRE" »
Edward P. May Sentenced for Orchestrating $350 Million Ponzi Scheme Largest-Ever in Michigan Edward P. May, age 75, was sentenced last week to 16 years in federal prison for orchestrating the largest Ponzi scheme in the Eastern District of Michigan...
Continue reading "MAY NOT SEE THE LIGHT OF DAY (FOR PONZI SCHEME)" »
Previously Unnamed Co-Conspirator Pleads Guilty in $135 Million Phony Lease Scheme The owner of a purported medical equipment company based in New Jersey pleaded guilty yesterday in connection with his role in a $135 million phony lease scheme,...
Continue reading "THEY'RE GETTING A NEW LEASE ON LIFE" »
Court Orders Defendant Who Assisted "Grant Writers" Scheme to Pay $1.68 Million for Refunds to Defrauded Consumers, After Trial on FTC Charges In response to charges by the Federal Trade Commission and four state attorneys general, a U.S. district...
Continue reading "FEDS GET A $1.68 MILLION GRANT" »
Six Indicted in $25 Million Mortgage Fraud Scheme Defendants Include Two Attorneys, Loan Officer, and Real Estate Agent A federal grand jury in Brooklyn returned a superseding indictment charging six defendants with a mortgage fraud scheme in which...
Continue reading "DID THEY TRY TO STEAL $25 MILLION?" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN & NYC SUE BANK OF NEW YORK MELLON FOR DEFRAUDING PENSION FUNDS, OTHER CUSTOMERS IN FOREIGN CURRENCY TRADING BNY Mellon Promised Customers "Best Rate" On Foreign Currency Exchange Transactions - Instead Gave Worst & Pocketed Difference A.G....
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Two U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Employees and Two Others Indicted in $20 Million Bribery and Kickback Scheme Involving Government Contracts Defendants Arrested as Authorities Seize Millions in Assets Four Virginia men, including two longtime employees of...
Continue reading "NO KICKING BACK FOR THESE GUYS" »
Danfoss Group Subsidiary Agrees to Plead Guilty for Role in Price-Fixing Conspiracy Involving Refrigerant Compressors Company Agrees to Pay $3 Million Criminal Fine Danfoss Flensburg GmbH, formerly Danfoss Compressors GmbH, has agreed to plead guilty and to pay...
Continue reading "DOJ DEFLATES COMPRESSOR PRICE-FIXING SCHEME" »
At FTC's Request, Court Shuts Down Deceptive Mortgage and Debt Relief Operation One Firm Charged $1,495 for Loan Modification Program, but Provided No Services At the Federal Trade Commission's request, a U.S. district court has shut down two related operations...
Continue reading "NO MITIGATION, NO RELIEF, NO SILVER LINING FOR THEM?" »
Justice Department Sues to Shut Down New Jersey Tax Preparer Newark Man Allegedly Claimed Phony Dependents on Customers' Tax Returns The United States has filed a lawsuit seeking to stop Luvander Hollaway from preparing federal tax returns for...
Continue reading "JUSTICE DEPARTMENT WOULDN'T WRITE THIS OFF" »
DOH Nursing Home Overpayments and Poor Oversight Cost Taxpayers Millions The state Department of Health (DOH) overpaid nursing homes by an estimated $42 million in Medicaid funding over a 44-month period because many care providers are not collecting money from...
Continue reading "$42 MILLION THROWN OUT THE WINDOW" »
Sally Dinerman bought $10,000 worth of stock in a company that had been promoted by Sonny Bloch, a former radio talk-show host. When she finally realized her investment was worthless, Dinerman sued the radio station for fraud and sought to...
Continue reading "BLIND EYE?" »
Former Indianapolis City-County Councilman Convicted for Soliciting a Bribe and Attempted Extortion Former Indianapolis and Marion County, Ind., City-County Councilman Lincoln Plowman was convicted yesterday by a federal jury of attempted extortion and soliciting a bribe, announced Assistant Attorney...
Continue reading "A $6000 BRIBE WILL COST HIM A FORTUNE" »
Vice President Biden announces over $2 billion in anti-waste measures at Cabinet meeting New initiatives led by campaign to cut waste will save Medicaid waste and strengthen partnership with states to reduce improper unemployment insurance payments Yesterday, Vice President Biden convened...
Continue reading "A WASTE OF 2 BILLION?" »
"Beware of Fraud!"" State and Federal Officials Warn Fraud can be a big problem in areas struck by disasters, according to officials from the New Jersey Office of Emergency Management and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The damage...
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Comptroller DiNapoli and DA Murphy: Charlton Fire District Treasurer Allegedly Stole As Much As $500,000 Padded Her Own Pay by $316,670; Shopped with Thousands in Public Funds The treasurer of the Charlton Fire District misappropriated as much as $500,000 in...
Continue reading "WENT SHOPPING WITH OUR MONEY" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN ANNOUNCES RECOVERY OF $250,000 FROM ROCHESTER PHARMACY TO PAY BACK STATE IN MEDICAID FRAUD CASE AG Resolves Rochester Medicaid Fraud Case Involving Suspended Pharmacist Who Continued To Practice Schneiderman: My Office Is Committed To Recouping Every Dollar Stolen...
Continue reading "TOPS MARKET HITS BOTTOM?" »
FTC Action Halts Allegedly Illegal Tactics of Payday Lending Operation That Attempted to Garnish Consumers' Paychecks After the Federal Trade Commission filed an action in U.S. district court, a payday lender that allegedly attempted to illegally garnish consumers' wages...
Continue reading "THEY WERE LOOKING FOR A BIG (ILLEGAL) PAYDAY" »
Federal Agencies Release Annual Report to Congress on Scholarship Fraud The Federal Trade Commission, the Department of Justice, and the Department of Education have issued their annual report to Congress describing the agencies' continued efforts to combat scholarship and...
Continue reading "WANT A BOGUS SCHOLARSHIP?" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN ARRESTS FORMER NYS TAX AGENT FOR STEALING THOUSANDS OF TAXPAYER DOLLARS Defendant Preyed On Spanish-Speaking New Yorkers To Skim Thousands Intended For State Schneiderman: Abuse The Public Trust & You Will Be Prosecuted [En Español Attorney General...
Continue reading "THIEVING TAX AGENT?" »
"Acne Cure" Mobile App Marketers Will Drop Baseless Claims Under FTC Settlements Marketers who advertised that their smartphone applications could treat acne have agreed to stop making baseless claims in order to settle FTC charges. The mobile applications, commonly...
Continue reading "AcneApp DIDN'T WORK?" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN SECURES PRISON TIME FOR NURSING HOME EMPLOYEE WHO COMMITTED $2.2 MILLION MEDICAID FRAUD New Rochelle Nursing Home Administrator Inflated Claims For Treatments Never Provided To Collect Larger Medicaid Reimbursements Defendant Pleaded Guilty to Grand Larceny And Criminal Tax...
Continue reading "SHE STOLE $2.2 MILLION FROM MEDICAID" »
Noted Scientist Pleads Guilty to Attempted Espionage Scientist Arrested in 2009 Following Undercover Operation Stewart David Nozette, a scientist who once worked for the Department of Energy, the Department of Defense, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and...
Continue reading "HE SPIED FOR ISRAEL" »
Former Citigroup Vice President Pleads Guilty to Bank Fraud for Embezzling More Than $22 Million Gary Foster, a former vice president in Citigroup, Inc.'s treasury finance department, pleaded guilty yesterday to bank fraud arising from his embezzlement of...
Continue reading "HOW TO STEAL $22 MILLION FROM CITIGROUP" »
Las Vegas Man Pleads Guilty in Connection with Fraud Scheme to Gain Control of Condominium Homeowners' Associations A Las Vegas man pleaded guilty yesterday for his role in a scheme to fraudulently gain control of condominium homeowners' associations (HOA)...
Continue reading "WHO'S THE STRAW MAN NOW?" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN ARRESTS FOUR MOTOR VEHICLE INSPECTORS FOR FAKING THOUSANDS OF INSPECTIONS & PASSING UNTESTED CARS IN NYC Undercover Investigation Reveals Employees At Four Of NYC's Busiest Inspection Stations Okayed Cars Without Conducting Mandatory Safety Reviews Laws Flouted To Certify...
Continue reading "CLEAN SCAN SCAM " »
Florida Man Sentenced to Over 21 Years in Prison for Operating Cramming Scheme While Incarcerated Bilked Telephone Customers for Approximately $35 Million Willoughby Farr, 46, of West Palm Beach, Fla., has been sentenced to 262 months in prison...
Continue reading "CRAMMING GOT HIM OVER 21 YEARS" »
Orange County Man Who Admitted Hacking Into Personal Computers Sentenced to Six Years in Federal Prison for 'Sextortion' of Women and Teenagers A Santa Ana man who hacked into dozens of computers to obtain personal data--and in some...
Continue reading "SEXTORTION?" »
Thirteen Individuals Charged with Illegal Distribution of Anabolic Steroids, Human Growth Hormones and Oxycodone Including Five Doctors, a Pharmacist and a Chiropractor Thirteen individuals, including five doctors, one pharmacist and one chiropractor, were charged yesterday for their participation...
Continue reading "DOPEY DOCTORS" »
Lucas,Tuesday, September 5, will be Congress' first day back in Washington, D.C., after the August recess.Already, on this very first day back, corporate cronies in the Senate will be attempting to thwart the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau from protecting consumers...
Continue reading "WE'RE SICK OF GRANDSTANDING" »
FTC Warns Small Businesses: Don't Open Email Falsely Claiming to be From FTC The FTC is warning small businesses that an email with a subject line "URGENT: Pending Consumer Complaint" is not from the FTC. The email says that...
Continue reading "DON'T OPEN MAIL FROM THE FTC?" »
How to Report Fraud or Theft of Government Disaster Aid Funds After Hurricane Irene and the earthquake on the East Coast of the United States, members of the public are reminded to contact the FBI at the National Center...
Continue reading "REPORT DISASTER RELATED FRAUD" »
Miami-Area Nurse Pleads Guilty in $25 Million Health Care Fraud Scheme Miami-area resident Farah Maria Perez, a registered nurse, pleaded guilty yesterday for her participation in a $25 million Medicare fraud scheme involving false billings for home health services,...
Continue reading "HOW DOES A NURSE STEAL $25 MILLION?" »
Emirates Fined for Improperly Limiting Reimbursements for Delayed BaggageThe U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) fined the Dubai-based airline Emirates $100,000 for limiting compensation for lost, damaged, and delayed baggage to less than consumers were entitled under an international treaty. "All...
Continue reading "MORE BAGGAGE FOR EMIRATES?" »
DOT Fines JetBlue for Violating Price Advertising RulesYesterday, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) fined JetBlue Airways $50,000 for violating federal aviation laws and the Department's rules prohibiting deceptive price advertising in air travel. "When passengers shop for an airline...
Continue reading "JETBLUE ZONKED FOR "DECEPTIVE PRICE ADVERTISING"" »
Millersville Man Sentenced for Posing as a Retired Army Special Forces Colonel Lied for 12 Years About Special Forces and Terrorism Experience to Gain Teaching Employment; Also Fabricated a Story of His Daughter's Kidnapping and Murder by Sex...
Continue reading "COLONEL KLINK" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN ANNOUNCES INDICTMENT & ARREST OF FORMER NORTH COUNTRY TOWN CLERK FOR STEALING PUBLIC MONEY Public Integrity Investigation Uncovers Former Cape Vincent Clerk Who Stole From Taxpayers Schneiderman: Government Officials Who Rip Off Taxpayers Will Be Vigorously Prosecuted...
Continue reading "SHE SUPPOSEDLY STOLE 50 GRAND" »
FTC Cautions Consumers on the Pitfalls of Penny Auctions Online penny auctions may offer deals, but they can also pose problems, as the Federal Trade Commission warns in a new consumer alert Online Penny Auctions: Nothing for Something? Penny...
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After 85-87 Pitt Street, LLC purchased a piece of property from 85-87 Pitt Street Realty Corp., the building reportedly suffered from a "bug infestation." When the purchaser later sued for "fraudulent inducement, fraudulent misrepresentation and fraudulent concealment," the New York...
Continue reading "BUGGIN' OUT" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN ANNOUNCES SENTENCING OF ONONDAGA COUNTY MEDICAID CONTRACTOR WHO DEFRAUDED SYSTEM FOR MORE THAN $541,000 AG Secures Full Restitution for New York Taxpayers New York's Taxpayers will no Longer Foot the Bill when Fraudulent Contractors try to Rig...
Continue reading "HE ONLY GOT PROBATION FOR PHONY BIDS" »
FTC Approves Final Order Settling Charges against Marketer for Claiming that Nivea Skin Cream Can Help Consumers Slim Down Following a public comment period, the Federal Trade Commission finalized the Order settling charges against Beiersdorf, Inc. for falsely claiming...
Continue reading "NIVEA SKIN CREAM WON'T REDUCE YOUR SIZE" »
Department of Health and Human Services Employee Pleads Guilty to Theft of Government Funds An employee of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) pleaded guilty yesterday in U.S. District Court in Asheville, N.C., to theft of approximately...
Continue reading "SHE COULDN'T COVER $114,494" »
Real Estate Agent Indicted in $50 Million Mortgage Fraud Scheme Last week, a federal grand jury in Brooklyn has returned an indictment charging the defendant Edul Ahmad with participating in a mortgage fraud scheme in which he and...
Continue reading "DID REAL ESTATE AGENT HELP STEAL $50 MILLION?" »
Former Owner of New York City Garment Assembly Company Pleads Guilty for Failing to Pay Employment Taxes David Chui, a resident of Queens, N.Y., pleaded guilty to failing to pay employment taxes in connection with his former ownership of a...
Continue reading "GARMENTO FACES FIVE YEARS FOR EVADING TAXES" »
Ohio Wildlife Officer Charged with Lacey Act Crimes A federal grand jury in Cincinnati, Ohio, returned a four-count indictment on Wednesday, charging Allan Wright, 45, of Russellville, Ohio, with trafficking in and making false records for illegally harvested white-tailed deer...
Continue reading "WILL HE PAY DEERLY FOR THIS?" »
Port Authority Management Fails to Effectively Curb Overtime Costs The Port Authority (PA) is spending millions of dollars on overtime despite management's claims that their business model makes fiscal sense, according to an audit released yesterday by Comptroller Thomas P....
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Berwyn Man Pleads Guilty to Running $17 Million Ponzi Scheme Robert Stinson Jr., 56, of Berwyn, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty on Monday to charges contained in a 26-count indictment detailing a Ponzi scheme that defrauded more than 260 investors of more than $17...
Continue reading "LIFE'S NOT GOOD FOR THIS GUY" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN SECURES FINANCIAL RELIEF FOR HUNDREDS OF DEBT-RIDDEN SOLDIERS IN NORTH COUNTRY Company Preyed on Soldiers and Destroyed Their Credit Ratings Schneiderman: While Soldiers Were Fighting Overseas, This is the Last Thing they Needed to Worry about at...
Continue reading "THEY RIPPED OFF OUR SOLDIERS" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN SECURES GUILTY PLEAS FROM SHAM BREAST CANCER CHARITY ORGANIZERS Long Island Scam Artists Behind Phony "Coalition for Breast Cancer Cures" Charged With Grand Larceny, Scheme to Defraud & Falsifying Business Records Money Raised To Fight Breast Cancer...
Continue reading "THEY STOLE FROM BREAST CANCER CONTRIBUTORS" »
Three Fishermen, Seafood Wholesaler and Associated Employees Indicted for Obstruction of Justice and the Illegal Harvest and Sale of New Jersey Oysters A 15-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Camden, N.J., was unsealed yesterday following the...
Continue reading "WILL THEY CLAM UP ABOUT THE OYSTERS?" »
Mobile Apps Developer Settles FTC Charges It Violated Children's Privacy Rule Company Collected Kids' Information Without Their Parents' Consent A developer of mobile applications, including children's games for the iPhone and iPod touch, will pay $50,000 to settle Federal Trade...
Continue reading "FTC SHOULD HAVE BROKEN THEIR THUMBS" »
FBI Releases 2010 Mortgage Fraud Report According to this latest report--which highlights current mortgage fraud schemes, perpetrators, and mortgage fraud "hot spots"--mortgage fraud continued at elevated levels during 2010. The FBI, with its partners, dedicated significant resources to the...
Continue reading "MORTGAGE FRAUD IS STILL RAMPANT" »
Former NASDAQ Managing Director Sentenced to 42 Months in Prison for Insider Trading Late last week, Donald Johnson, a former managing director of the NASDAQ Stock Market, was sentenced to 42 months in prison for engaging in insider trading on...
Continue reading "42 MONTHS FOR INSIDER TRADING" »
Family Physician and Pharmacist Among Those Arrested in Drug Conspiracy and Health Care Fraud Case A 498-count indictment was unsealed earlier this week charging 53 defendants, including a Montgomery County physician and a Northeast Philadelphia pharmacist, in a...
Continue reading "ON OVERDOING OXYCODONE" »
Virginia Woman Pleads Guilty in Relation to Staged Kidnapping in Guatemala A Virginia woman pleaded guilty yesterday in relation to a staged kidnapping in Guatemala, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Neil H....
Continue reading "SHE STAGED HER OWN KIDNAPPING" »
Los Angeles Jury Convicts Two Church Pastors and Their Employee of $14.2 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme Two pastors of a now defunct Los Angeles church and a woman they employed at their fraudulent durable medical equipment (DME)...
Continue reading "THIEVING PASTORS GET FLEECED" »
U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Charges 65 Yonkers Gang Members, Associates, and Others with Narcotics and Firearms Offenses Three Defendants Also Charged with Murder of Rival Gang Member On Tuesday, PREET BHARARA, the United States...
Continue reading "GOVERNMENT GANGS UP ON NEW YORK STREET GANGS" »
Four Florida Men Charged in Boston with Defrauding Homeowners in Home Loan Modification Scam Four Florida men were arrested yesterday on charges that they defrauded homeowners in Massachusetts and elsewhere in connection with a home loan modification scam, announced...
Continue reading "THEY DEPRIVED PEOPLE OF HOPE" »
Guilty Plea for Last Defendant in Connection with Counterfeit Art Sales United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that Robert E. Lucky, Jr, 64, of New Orleans, pled guilty yesterday to a one-count bill of information charging mail fraud in...
Continue reading "20 YEARS FOR SELLING PHONY CLEMENTINES" »
U.S. Files Complaint Against Education Management Corp. Alleging False Claims Act Violations The United States has intervened and filed a complaint in a whistleblower suit pending under the False Claims Act against Education Management Corp. (EDMC) and several affiliated...
Continue reading "HOW WILL EDUCATION MANAGEMENT MANAGE THIS?" »
Two Chinese Defendants Plead Guilty in Brooklyn, N.Y., to Trafficking in Counterfeit Perfume Two defendants, Shaoxiong Zhou, 42, and Shaoxia Huang, 33, both of Shantou, Guangdong, China, have pleaded guilty to trafficking in counterfeit perfume, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny...
Continue reading "THEY THOUGHT THIS STUNK" »
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Announces Charges Against 14 Defendants in $58 Million Mortgage Fraud Scheme Involving Long Island Mortgage Broker First Class Equities Defendants Took Part in Fraudulent Deals Involving Over 100 Mortgages; Five Loan Officers and Five Attorneys Among Those...
Continue reading "THIS WASN'T A FIRST CLASS MORTGAGE BUSINESS" »
DOT Fines Air Canada for Violating Price Advertising Rules The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) today fined Air Canada $50,000 for violating the Department's rules prohibiting deceptive price advertising in air travel. "When passengers buy an airline ticket, they have...
Continue reading "DID AIR CANADA MISLEAD?" »
Arkansas Attorney Pleads Guilty to $47 Million Bank Fraud Scheme Kevin Harold Lewis, of Little Rock, Arkansas, pleaded guilty to one count of bank fraud, announced Christopher R. Thyer, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, and...
Continue reading "HE ISSUED $47 MILLION IN PHONY BONDS" »
Miami-Area Resident Pleads Guilty to Participating in $200 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme A Miami-area resident pleaded guilty on Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Miami for his role in two separate fraud schemes that resulted in the submission of more than $200...
Continue reading "THEY BILKED MEDICARE FOR $200 MILLION" »
FTC Charges Marketers with Tricking People Who Applied for Payday Loans; Used Bank Account Information to Charge Consumers for Unwanted Programs At the request of the Federal Trade Commission, a federal court has halted an online operation that allegedly...
Continue reading "NO PAYDAY ANGEL" »
Twenty Convicted for Defrauding Aflac A total of 20 South Texas residents indicted for their roles in a scheme to defraud the American Family Life Assurance Company (Aflac) of millions of dollars by filing thousands of false injury claims under...
Continue reading "THEY GOT THEM UNDER THEIR WING" »
Former Army Official Sentenced to 18 Months in Prison for Accepting Illegal Gratuities from Contractors in Iraq Last week, a former U.S. Army lieutenant colonel was sentenced to 18 months in prison for accepting illegal gratuities from multiple Iraqi...
Continue reading "WHAT TIPPED THEM OFF?" »
Florida Man Pleads Guilty to $30 Million Investment Fraud Scheme Last week, David R. Lewalski, formerly of Gainesville, Fla., pleaded guilty to mail fraud in connection with his operation of a $30 million investment fraud scheme, announced Assistant Attorney General...
Continue reading "THEY SQUATTED A $30 MILLION BOTFLY" »
FTC Stops Fake 'Yellow Pages' Scam; Foreign Operation Targeted Small Businesses and Nonprofits in United States and Other Countries At the Federal Trade Commission's request, a federal judge has temporarily halted a European-based operation that has allegedly bilked small...
Continue reading "FTC'S GOT THIS SCAM'S NUMBER" »
In a lawsuit, the New York State Attorney General alleged that Wells Fargo Insurance Services breached a fiduciary duty owed to customers because the company failed to disclose that it received fees from companies to which it directed business. The...
Continue reading "A WOLF IN SHEEP'S CLOTHING?" »
DiNapoli Audit Results in Nearly $1 Million Reimbursement to State Treasury by City Tech College The New York City College of Technology has returned $997,234 to the State Treasury following an audit of the college's bid deposit account by New...
Continue reading "DID CITY TECH TRY TO STEAL A MILLION BUCKS?" »
Two Brooklyn, N.Y., Pharmacists Charged in $3 Million Health Care Fraud Scheme Two defendants who co-owned and operated two Brooklyn,N.Y.,-area pharmacies were arrested yesterday on health care fraud charges for their alleged participation in a scheme to defraud Medicare...
Continue reading "HOW DO YOU NOT CATCH 869,698 PHONY PRESCRIPTIONS?" »
Los Angeles Man Sentenced to Prison for Conspiracy to Sell Bogus Insurance Policies in New Jersey and Elsewhere A Los Angeles man who claimed to be the president of an insurance company was sentenced yesterday to 70...
Continue reading "HE SOLD BOGUS POLICIES" »
Mortgage Broker Charged in $20 Million Mortgage Fraud Scheme This past Friday in federal court, an Edina mortgage broker was charged for his role in a $20 million mortgage fraud scheme that involved 57 properties. Derrick Ivan Lance,...
Continue reading "FBI LANCES $20 MILLION MORTGAGE-SCHEME FRAUDSTER" »
Hacker Sentenced in Virginia to 10 Years in Prison for Stealing 675,000 Credit Card Numbers Leading to $36 Million in Losses Last week, Rogelio Hackett Jr., 25, of Lithonia, Ga., was sentenced to 120 months in prison by U.S. District...
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COUNTERFEITING OF MILITARY TECHNOLOGY IS PUTTING TROOPS LIVES AT RISK AND COULD THREATEN SYRACUSE COMPANIES LIKE LOCKHEED, SRC, SENSIS, & C SPEED - SCHUMER PUSHES LEGISLATION TO CRACKDOWN ON MAKERS OF FAKE MILITARY PARTS A Government Study Shows That Counterfeit...
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A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN ANNOUNCES TAKEDOWN OF FAKE NURSING SCHOOL NETWORK Undercover Investigation Reveals Elaborate Criminal Conspiracy Stretching From NYC & LI To Jamaica Scheme Collected More Than $6 Million From Hundreds Of Defrauded Students Who Paid For Bogus Degrees Last...
Continue reading ""NURSING SCHOOLS" GAVE OUT PHONY DEGREES" »
FTC Action Leads to $4.8 Million Judgment Against Deceptive Marketer; Company Tricked Payday Loan Applicants into Buying Prepaid Debit Cards At the request of the Federal Trade Commission, a federal court has ordered Swish Marketing, Inc. to pay more...
Continue reading "WHAT A BUNCH OF SWISHES!" »
Use Caution When Approached for Disaster Donations A solicitation for a donation to a "tornado-relief fund" may arrive by e-mail, by phone or via a knock at the door. What can you do to be sure the request for...
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Northwest Suburban Man Sentenced to Six Years in Prison for Swindling $5 Million from 150 Victims in Investment Fraud Scheme A northwest suburban man was sentenced to six years in federal prison for engaging in an investment fraud scheme that...
Continue reading "SIX YEARS FOR INVESTMENT SWINDLER" »
FTC Returns Nearly $108 Million to 450,000 Homeowners Overcharged by Countrywide for Loan Servicing Fees The Federal Trade Commission is mailing 450,177 refund checks worth almost $108 million to homeowners who were allegedly overcharged by Countrywide Home Loans, Inc....
Continue reading "DOES COUNTRYWIDE OWE YOU MONEY?" »
Executive of Taiwan Aftermarket Auto Lights Manufacturer Arrested and Indicted for Participation in Price-Fixing Conspiracy An executive of a Taiwan manufacturer of aftermarket auto lights was arrested on July 12, 2011, at Los Angeles International Airport and indicted yesterday...
Continue reading "THIS HOMY FACES 10 YEARS IN JAIL" »
FTC Halts Timeshare Property Resale Scam; Telemarketers Falsely Claimed They Had Buyers Lined Up, Agency Alleges At the Federal Trade Commission's request, a federal court has temporarily halted a telemarketing operation that targeted consumers trying to sell their timeshare...
Continue reading "IT WAS TIME TO END TIMESHARE SCAM" »
Cuomo Administration Announces New Cigarette Tax Enforcement Efforts Joint efforts of Department of Taxation and Finance, State Police, and federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives yielding immediate results On Friday, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo directed Lieutenant Governor Robert...
Continue reading "SMOKING OUT CIGARETTE TAX CHEATS" »
Federal Court Bars Idaho Woman from Promoting "Form 1099-OID" Tax Scheme Tax Preparer Sought More Than $168 Million in Fraudulent Tax Refunds A federal court has permanently barred Penny Jones from preparing federal tax returns for others and from promoting...
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Former Hospital General Counsel Pleads Guilty to Million Dollar Fraud and Money Laundering Roosevelt Hairston Jr., 46,of Malvern, PA, pleaded guilty today to mail fraud, money laundering, and filing a false tax return stemming from his embezzlement of...
Continue reading "FBI CHOPS CHOP EMBEZZLER" »
Patient Recruiter Sentenced to 27 Months in Prison in Connection with Detroit-Area Infusion Therapy Schemes A patient recruiter for three Detroit-area clinics was sentenced to 27 months in prison for his role in fraud schemes that attempted to defraud the...
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California Firm to Pay U.S. $400,000 to Resolve False Claims Firm Employed Disabled Workers at Fort Bliss, Texas, Under Federal Program PRIDE Industries, and its subsidiary, PRIDE Industries One, has agreed to pay the United States $400,000 to resolve...
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Former Pitcairn Supervisor Improperly Spent $35,622 of Town Money Case Forwarded to St. Lawrence County District Attorney Former Pitcairn Supervisor Susan M. Smith issued unauthorized checks for $35,622, altered bank statements and kept shoddy records, according to an audit by...
Continue reading "SHE SPENT 10% OF THE TOWN'S MONEY, ON HERSELF" »
Company Pleads Guilty to Participating in Ready-Mix Concrete Price-Fixing Conspiracy An Iowa-based company pleaded guilty to participating in a price-fixing conspiracy for the sales of ready-mix concrete, the Department of Justice announced on Friday. According to a one-count felony charge...
Continue reading "THEIR PRICES WERE A BIT TOO CONCRETE" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN ANNOUNCES $92 MILLION SETTLEMENT WITH J.P. MORGAN CHASE Multistate Investigation Finds National Abuses In Municipal Bond Derivatives Market Defrauded Governments & Nonprofits In NY & Nationally Entitled To Millions In Restitution Schneiderman: Zero Tolerance For Financial Misconduct [En...
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Gambrills Podiatrist Pleads Guilty to Fraudulently Billing Medicare Over $1.1 Million Was Prohibited from Billing Medicare as Part of a Settlement Agreement Related to Previous Allegations of Fraudulent Billing Larry Bernhard, age 55, a podiatrist who operated his business...
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Brooklyn Neurologist Pleads Guilty in Health Care Fraud Scheme Leonard Langman, M.D., a neurologist who owned and operated a Brooklyn, N.Y., medical clinic pleaded guilty yesterday for his role in a scheme to defraud Medicare; the U.S. Department of Labor,...
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Attorney Sentenced in Manhattan Federal Court to 30 Months in Prison for Insider Trading Scheme PREET BHARARA, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that attorney ARTHUR CUTILLO was sentenced yesterday in Manhattan federal court...
Continue reading "ATTORNEY GETS 30 MONTHS ON THE INSIDE" »
Las Vegas Physician to Pay U.S. $5.7 Million to Resolve False Claims Act Allegations Related to Radiation Oncology Services and Other Procedures Rakesh Nathu, a Las Vegas physician, has agreed to pay the United States $5.7 million plus interest to...
Continue reading "THIS MUST HAVE RADIATED WITH THIS DOCTOR" »
CONDO DEVELOPER YAIR LEVY PERMANENTLY BANNED FROM SELLING APARTMENTS IN NY A.G. Schneiderman Secures Full Judgment In Lawsuit Against Real Estate Developer Who Defrauded Homebuyers & Residents Levy Raided Condo Reserve Fund & Used Money For Personal & Unrelated...
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DiNapoli: West Seneca Fire District Treasurer Raided Funds for Himself, Wife Case Forwarded to Erie County District Attorney The treasurer of the West Seneca Fire District No. 1 apparently misappropriated $137,866 over eight years and paid $115,402 of it to...
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Mayor of Port Allen, Louisiana Convicted of Racketeering United States Attorney Donald J. Cazayoux, Jr., announced on Tuesday that DEREK A. LEWIS, age 50, of Port Allen, Louisiana, pled guilty before U.S. District Court Judge Brian A. Jackson to violating the Racketeer...
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HSBC India Client Indicted for Filing False Tax Returns and Failing to Report Foreign Bank Account Dr. Arvind Ahuja of Greendale, Wis., was indicted yesterday by a federal grand jury in Milwaukee on four counts of willfully filing materially false tax...
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A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN SUES SHAM CHARITY THAT MISUSED MILLIONS RAISED TO FIGHT BREAST CANCER A.G.'s Lawsuit Seeks To Shut Down "Coalition Against Breast Cancer" Deceived Donors Gave $9 Million To Fight Disease; Nearly Every Dollar Diverted To Pay Insiders- Including...
Continue reading ""COALITION AGAINST BREAST CANCER" WAS A SCAM?" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN URGES NEW YORKERS TO REPORT INTERNET PREDATORS & SCAMMERS PREYING ON KIDS TO HIS OFFICE With Schools Out For Summer, Attorney General Arms Parents With Tips & Information to Protect the Safety & Privacy of Their Families Schneiderman:...
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LEGISLATURE PASSES SCHNEIDERMAN BILL TO CRACK DOWN ON TAX CHEATS AG Schneiderman and DA Vance Team Up To Close "Helmsley Loophole" That Let Tax Evaders Off The Hook For Breaking State Laws Schneiderman: There Must Be One Set Of Rules...
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Belarusian National is Sentenced to 41 Months in Prison for Participating in International Online Scheme to Steal U.S. Tax Refunds A Belarusian national and resident of Nantucket, Mass., was sentenced yesterday in federal court to 41 months in prison for...
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China Airlines Fined for Violating DOT Price Advertising Rules The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) yesterday assessed a civil penalty against China Airlines for violating the Department's rules prohibiting deceptive advertising of airfares. The company was assessed an $80,000 civil...
Continue reading "CHINA AIR LIED" »
FTC Stops Bogus Mortgage Loan Modification Business Defendants Ordered to Pay Almost $19 Million to Settle FTC Charges Under a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission, a federal court banned three men and their company from the mortgage modification business...
Continue reading "WILL THEY BE BORROWING THIS CASH?" »
Phoenix Real Estate Investor Pleads Guilty to $50 Million Mortgage Fraud Scheme Brett Matheson, 46, pleaded guilty on Monday in federal court to conspiracy to commit wire fraud in a $50 million mortgage fraud scheme based in Phoenix. Two...
Continue reading "$50 MILLION IN FAKE LOANS?" »
AT SCHUMER'S URGING, THE FTC WILL LAUNCH AN INVESTIGATION INTO POSSIBLE PRICE GOUGING THAT COULD BE KEEPING GAS PRICES AT THE PUMP FROM COMING DOWN FASTER IN NEW YORK Recent Reports Indicate That U.S. Refiners Are Cutting Back On Gasoline...
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DEPARTMENTS OF JUSTICE, HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES HIGHLIGHT JOINT EFFORTS TO COMBAT HEALTH CARE FRAUD IN PHILADELPHIA Attorney General Holder and Secretary Sebelius Host Sixth Regional Fraud Prevention Summit On Friday, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and the Department of Health...
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Court Bans Defendants from Selling Work-at-Home and Grant Scams, and Orders Them to Pay $10.4 Million Last week, a federal judge has ruled in favor of the Federal Trade Commission and ordered Real Wealth, Inc. and its owner, Lance...
Continue reading "THIS WASN'T REAL WEALTH" »
Former Executive of Illinois Refuse Container Repair Company Sentenced to Serve 16 Months in Prison for Conspiring to Defraud the City of Chicago A former vice president of an Illinois refuse disposal container repair company was sentenced yesterday to serve...
Continue reading "HE COULDN'T REFUSE THIS" »
United States Files Suit Against Florida-Based Bay Area Sleep Associates LLC and Its Owner The United States has filed a complaint under the False Claims Act (FCA) against Bay Area Sleep Associates LLC, dba SomnoMedics LLC, and its owner, Edward...
Continue reading "SOMEONE WAS ASLEEP HERE" »
FTC Approves Final Order Settling Charges that Firm Used Misleading Online Reviews Following a public comment period, the Federal Trade Commission finalized the Order settling charges that Legacy Learning Systems Inc. and its owner, Lester Gabriel Smith, deceptively advertised...
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A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN SUES BUFFALO AUTO DEALER FOR SCAMMING CONSUMERS Consumers Never Received Vehicles They Paid For, Then Dealer Closed Its Doors Without Offering Refunds Dealer Used Consumers' Payments To Pay For Previous Crime Schneiderman: My Office Has Filed...
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New England Commercial Fisherman Charged with Lacey Act Crimes for Illegally Harvesting Striped Bass Daniel B. Birkbeck, 46, of North Stonington, Conn., was charged today in federal court with trafficking in and falsifying records for illegally harvested Atlantic Striped Bass...
Continue reading "FISH SELLER FACES FIVE YEARS, FINES & FORFEITURE" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN APPOINTS PUBLIC INTEGRITY OFFICERS TO NASSAU AND SUFFOLK COUNTY REGIONAL OFFICES Schneiderman Details Statewide Initiative To Root Out Government Corruption At All Levels, Restore Confidence in Public Sector New Public Integrity Officers Give Long Island Residents a...
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TACA Fined for Violating DOT Price Advertising Rules On Friday, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) assessed a civil penalty against TACA International Airlines for violating the Department's rules prohibiting deceptive advertising of airfares. The company was assessed a $55,000 civil...
Continue reading "ATTACKING TACA" »
Court Halts Bogus Prepaid Calling Card Claims; FTC Alleges Cards Failed to Deliver the Advertised Minutes At the request of the Federal Trade Commission, a U.S. district court has ordered a temporary halt to the deceptive advertising claims used...
Continue reading "WAIT A MINUTE!" »
SCHUMER DEMANDS IMMEDIATE INVESTIGATION INTO PRICE FIXING BY U.S. OIL REFINERS - PRACTICE COULD BE KEEPING GAS PRICES AT THE PUMP FROM COMING DOWN FASTER IN BUFFALO Recent Reports Indicate That U.S. Refiners Are Cutting Back On Gasoline Stockpiles To...
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FTC Charges Promissory Note Pitchman With Deceiving Consumers Infomercial Falsely Claims It's Easy to "Find 'Em," "List 'Em," and "Make Money" Agency Also Settles Charges Against Consumer Who Gave Allegedly Misleading Testimonial The Federal Trade Commission has charged Russell Dalbey,...
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A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN WINS LANDMARK CASE AGAINST NYC DEVELOPER YAIR LEVY, OPENING DOOR TO MILLIONS OF DOLLARS FOR DEFRAUDED RESIDENTS Attorney General Seeks to Bar Developer From Sales & Award $7.4 Million in Restitution Levy Raided Condo Reserve Fund &...
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Vice President of Fraudulent Physical Therapy Company Pleads Guilty to Medicare Fraud On Friday, a Miami-area resident who was an owner and vice-president of a fraudulent physical therapy company in Lakeland, Fla., pleaded guilty for his role in a scheme...
Continue reading "A DYNAMIC FRAUD" »
FTC Warns Consumers: Charity and Home Repair Scams May Appear After a Disaster After flooding along the Mississippi River and tornadoes in the southeast and midwest, the Federal Trade Commission reminds consumers that scams often follow disasters. The nation's...
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STATEMENT OF MAYOR MICHAEL R. BLOOMBERG ON CITYTIME PROJECT "The CityTime project was intended to modernize an antiquated, largely paper-based timekeeping system, and it has accomplished that. We have more than 163,000 employees on the system now, and we expect...
Continue reading "CITY CRAVES CITYTIME CASH" »
FTC Settlements Puts Debt Relief Operations Out of Business Defendants Used Robocalls to Sell Bogus Plans to Lower Credit Card Interest Rates The FTC has settled two actions that charged marketers with deceptively claiming they could reduce consumers' credit card...
Continue reading "THESE CREDIT-CARD SCAMMERS ARE HISTORY" »
North Carolina Pilot Indicted for Filing False Tax Returns and Obstructing the IR Charles Alexander Davis formerly of Mooresville, N.C., was indicted by a federal grand jury in Charlotte, N.C., on 10 counts of willfully filing materially false tax returns...
Continue reading "PILOT THOUGHT HE WAS ABOVE THE LAW" »
FTC Stops Marketers in Nationwide 'Free Vacation' Prize Scam Targeting Spanish-Speaking Consumers Every Contestant 'Won' But Promised Vacations Not Delivered The Federal Trade Commission, as part of its Hispanic Law Enforcement Initiative, has filed two court actions against five...
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Employee of Central Coast Bank Arrested for Stealing Nearly $110,000, Mostly from Elderly Customers An Arroyo Grande woman was arrested yesterday by special agents with the FBI on charges of stealing money from a federally insured financial institution. Brenda Bautista Hurtado,...
Continue reading "SHE STOLE FROM THE ELDERLY" »
SCHUMER DEMANDS IMMEDIATE INVESTIGATION INTO PRICE FIXING BY U.S. OIL REFINERS - PRACTICE COULD BE KEEPING GAS PRICES AT THE PUMP FROM COMING DOWN FASTER IN SYRACUSE Recent Reports Indicate That U.S. Refiners Are Cutting Back On Gasoline Stockpiles To...
Continue reading "SCHUMER WANTS TO FIX PRICE-FIXING" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL SCHNEIDERMAN ANNOUNCES SWEEPING NEW INITIATIVE TO CRACK DOWN ON PUBLIC CORRUPTION Attorney General Unveils Innovative Plan to Investigate Earmarks, Contracts, and Other Government Spending Through Cooperation with Comptroller New Initiative Aggressively Enhances Powers of AG to Combat...
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FTC Offers Information to Help U.S. Diversity Visa Lottery Applicants The Federal Trade Commission advises people who have participated in the U.S. State Department's Diversity Visa (DV) Lottery program that, according to the State Department, 2012 lottery results posted...
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Iowa Ready-Mix Concrete Company Pleads Guilty to Participating in Price-Fixing and Bid-Rigging Conspiracies An Iowa ready-mix concrete company pleaded guilty to participating in three separate conspiracies to fix prices and/or rig bids for the sales of ready-mix concrete, the...
Continue reading "READY-MIX WAS READY FOR PRICE-FIXING AND BID-RIGGING" »
Prominent Los Angeles Businessman Convicted on Federal Fraud Charges for Stealing $21 Million Entrusted to His Firm Ezri Namvar, a prominent Los Angeles businessman and real estate developer, was found guilty yesterday of four wire fraud charges for stealing approximately...
Continue reading "HE WAS AN UNQUALIFIED INTERMEDIARY" »
Federal Court Bars Ohio Accountant and Former Business Partner from Promoting Oil-and-Gas Tax Fraud Scheme Government Estimates Alleged Tax Loss of $5.7 Million to $6.9 Million A federal court has permanently barred two men from promoting an alleged tax...
Continue reading "ALL'S NOT WELL HERE" »
FTC Charges Online Marketers with Scamming Consumers out of Hundreds of Millions of Dollars with 'Free' Trial Offers The Federal Trade Commission has brought a law enforcement action against an online operation that allegedly raked in more than $450...
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Former Title and Escrow Agent Indicted for Mortgage Fraud Case Involves More Than $1.8 Million in Loans Ronald Johannes Sneijder, 48, a former owner of a title and escrow company based in the District of Columbia, has been indicted on...
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Former Puerto Rico Senator Jorge De Castro Font Sentenced to 60 Months in Prison for Honest Services Wire Fraud and Conspiracy to Commit Extortion Jorge De Castro Font, 47, a former senate majority leader in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico,...
Continue reading "A DISHONEST POLITICIAN?" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN SELECTED TO SERVE ON FEDERAL GAS PRICE MONITORING GROUP, JOINS OBAMA ADMINISTRATION IN REVIEWING COST OF OIL & GAS Schneiderman to Work with AG Holder to Examine Gas Price Increases and Act on Potential Consumer Violations ...
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Federal Court Bars Houston-Area Tax Preparers from Preparing Federal Tax Returns for Others A federal court has permanently barred Houston-area tax preparers Christopher Helton and Marcia Johnson from preparing federal tax returns for others, the Justice Department announced today. The...
Continue reading "PHONY TAX CREDITS FUELS INJUNCTION" »
Multi-Mex Distributor Inc. Announces Recall of Dietary Supplements: Consumers may be confused in thinking that the dietary supplements are actually antibiotics. Multi-Mex Distributor, Inc., Tucker, GA is recalling dietary supplements that may be labeled as antibiotic drugs. The products...
Continue reading "THIS SH*T AIN'T ANTIBIOTICS" »
Tips on Avoiding Fraudulent Charitable Contribution Schemes In response to the recent tornadoes that affected several Southern states and caused loss of life and flooding that has damaged property, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and National Center for Disaster Fraud...
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FTC Charges Utah Operation with Deceptive and Abusive Telemarketing Defendants Allegedly Made 16 Million Calls to Numbers on the Do Not Call Registry; Misrepresented How Funds Would Be Used At the request of the Federal Trade Commission, the Department of...
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California Company and Its CEO Sentenced for Conspiring to Illegally Export Industrial Valves to Iran GWC Valve International Inc., a company headquartered in Bakersfield, Calif., and its chief executive officer, David Meador, 52, were sentenced on Monday in the Eastern District of...
Continue reading "ONLY 13 MONTHS FOR SELLING VALVES TO IRAN" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN ANNOUNCES SETTLEMENT INVOLVING VIDEO STORE LATE FEES AND OTHER CHARGES Stores Shuttered in Communities All Over New York State; Unsuspecting Consumers Still Hit With Onerous Late Fees Schneiderman: Consumers Applying for Mortgages Had Marks on Credit Reports...
Continue reading "HOLLYWOOD VIDEO TO REWIND LATE FEES" »
FTC Returns More Than $11.8 Million to Consumers Defrauded by Q-Ray Bracelet Scam An administrator working for the Federal Trade Commission is mailing 248,931 refund checks to consumers defrauded by QT Inc., Q-Ray Company, and Bio-Metal, Inc., and their...
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Maryland Man Sentenced to 84 Months in Prison for Defrauding Cisco Systems Inc. Iheanyi Frank Chinasa, 39, of Gaithersburg, Md., was sentenced last week to 84 months in prison for his participation in a scheme to defraud Cisco Systems Inc., announced Assistant...
Continue reading "MARYLAND MAN'S MULTI-MILLION MISREPRESENTATION " »
Seafood Wholesaler Owners Sentenced in Alabama for Selling Falsely Labeled Fish, Smuggling and Misbranding of Seafood Products On Thursday, Karen L. Blyth and David H. M. Phelps were sentenced in federal court in Mobile, Ala., to 33 months and 24...
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Acting Capo of Genovese Organized Crime Family Sentenced in Manhattan Federal Court to 10 Years in Prison for Murder Conspiracy PREET BHARARA, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that ANTHONY PALUMBO, a/k/a "Tony D.,"...
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Salesman Indicted for Federal Meat and Poultry Inspection Act ViolationsSpoiled meat and poultry provided to local restaurants, vendors USDA´s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), in conjunction with the United States Attorney´s Office for the District of Puerto Rico, recently...
Continue reading "HE SOLD BAD MEAT" »
FTC Releases Agenda for Telephone Bill Cramming Forum The Federal Trade Commission has announced the agenda for its day-long public forum in Washington, D.C., on May 11, 2011, to examine telephone bill cramming and explore possible solutions to reduce unauthorized...
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FTC Offers Tips to Help People Avoid Being Scammed By Door-to-Door Sales Agents Pitching Home Security Systems The Federal Trade Commission is offering information to help homeowners avoid unscrupulous sales agents who go door-to-door during the summer months. These...
Continue reading "WATCH THOSE HOME SECURITY SYTEMS SCAMS" »
Former Texas Representative "Jim" Solis Admits to Role in Limas Extortion Scheme Former Texas representative Jose Santiago "Jim" Solis, has been convicted of aiding and abetting the extortion by former state district judge Abel Corral Limas, United States Attorney José...
Continue reading "JUDGE WANTED "8 GOLFBALLS" FROM WINNER" »
FBI Arrests Husband and Wife Business Owners on Katrina-Related Fraud Charges Daniel McMullen, Special Agent in Charge (SAC) of the Jackson Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and Special Agent in Charge (SAC) Scott Dennis, U.S. Small...
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Letter to New Yorkers: Governor Cuomo Orders Audit of LIPA Yesterday, Governor Cuomo directed the state Inspector General to immediately conduct an audit of the Long Island Power Authority (LIPA) due to concerns that LIPA may be unfairly raising rates,...
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Investment Adviser Pleads Guilty to $13.6 Million Fictitious Investment Program Scam The owner of Branchburg, New Jersey-based investment adviser Systematic Financial Associates, Inc., admitted earler this week to defrauding over 50 investors of more than $7 million by soliciting investments in a...
Continue reading "SHE SYSTEMATICALLY STOLE $13 MILLION" »
Free Monthly Legal Clinic for Tenants I am pleased to join with Eviction Intervention Services to offer a free monthly legal clinic for tenants. If your landlord is harassing you or threatening you with eviction, or is refusing to make...
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Maryland Man Pleads Guilty to Corruptly Endeavoring to Impede the Internal Revenue Service Tour Company Bus Driver Admits to Fraudulently Inflating Federal Fuel Tax Credits Thomas Robert Turner, a resident of Prince George's County, Md., pleaded guilty to...
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Governor Cuomo Directs Insurance Department to Issue Permanent Regulations Banning Elected Officials, Lobbyists, and Placement Agencts from Pension Fund Business and Eliminating "Pay-To-Play" Yesterday, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced that he is directing the Insurance Department to issue permanent regulations...
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Former Humanitarian Workers Each Sentenced to 142 Months in Prison for Defrauding Usaid of $1.9 Million Two former humanitarian aid workers were each sentenced yesterday to 142 months in prison for defrauding the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) of...
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Last of 10 Las Vegas Defendants Pleads Guilty to Falsifying Emissions Test Records DMV Database Project Led to Indictments Wajdi Waked, 25, of Las Vegas, pleaded guilty on Monday before Judge Philip M. Pro of the U.S. District Court in Nevada,...
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FTC Offers Facts to Help U.S. Diversity Visa Lottery Applicants Avoid Fraud The Federal Trade Commission is offering information to help prospective immigrants avoid fraud when seeking green cards - the right to live in the Unites States permanently. Even...
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New York Broker Pleads Guilty in International Stock Fraud Scheme A New York stock broker has pleaded guilty in federal court in Detroit to conspiracy to commit securities fraud and wire fraud in connection with the Alan Ralsky spamming...
Continue reading "PUMP AND DUMPER FACES 51 MONTHS" »
FDA warns companies to stop making MRSA claims for over-the-counter products The U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued four warning letters to companies that manufacture and market over-the-counter (OTC) drug products, including hand sanitizers, that claim to prevent infection from...
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A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN STOPS BUFFALO CAR DEALERSHIP FROM ILLEGAL LENDING PRACTICES Western NY Dealership Was Not Licensed to Issue Car Loans, But Did So Anyway Schneiderman: Consumers Were Left With Very Little Protection or Recourse Should Something Go Wrong ...
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Maker of Rascal Scooters to Pay $100,000 for Violating FTC's Do Not Call Rules Called Consumers on Registry Using Phone Numbers Gathered From Sweepstakes Entry Forms The manufacturer of Rascal Scooters, used by disabled and senior consumers with limited mobility,...
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After he purchased a thirteen year-old vehicle from Paul Orlick, George Drew learned that the signal switch didn't work and sued the seller to recover the repair costs. When the Nassau County District Court found in Orlick's favor, Drew appealed....
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Investment Adviser Pleads Guilty to Bank and Wire Fraud Charges Dante DeMiro, 43, of Milford, pled guilty earlier this week to five counts of bank and wire fraud, United States Attorney Barbara McQuade announced. Joining in the announcement was Special...
Continue reading "HE ORCHESTRATED A $7 MILLION PONZI SCHEME" »
Michigan Woman Pleads Guilty to Selling More Than $400,000 in Counterfeit Business Software On Wednesday, a Michigan woman pleaded guilty to selling more than $400,000 worth of counterfeit computer software, announced Assistant Attorney General of the Criminal Division Lanny A....
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A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN SECURES $2.95 MILLION FROM DECEPTIVE GAS & ELECTRIC COMPANIES THAT MISLED THOUSANDS OF NEW YORKERS Columbia Utilities Customers Were Promised Savings, But Bills Were Often Higher Than Former Providers' Rates, Some Unable to Cancel Enrollment or Receive Reimbursement...
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Middleton Woman Ordered to Pay $233,024 for Defrauding Port of Hope Bobbi A. George, 31, of Middleton, Idaho, was sentenced on Tuesday for wire fraud as a result of her and her mother's involvement in the misappropriation of $177,000 from the Port...
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Founder and President of Rhode Island and Georgia-Based Technology Firm to Plead Guilty in Multi-Million-Dollar Naval Kickback Scheme More Than $9 Million in Kickbacks Paid to Naval Civilian Contract Officer and Others The founder and president of a technology services...
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Federal Court Bars Philadelphia Tax Firm and Ownerfrom Claiming First-Time-Homebuyer Tax Credit for Customers Landsdowne, Pa., Man Claimed False Homebuyer Credits and Business Deductions A federal court has barred a Philadelphia tax preparation firm and its owner from preparing federal...
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FTC Seeks to Halt 10 Operators of Fake News Sites from Making Deceptive Claims About Acai Berry Weight Loss Products Internet Marketers Falsely Claim Endorsement from ABC, Fox News, CBS, CNN, USA Today, and Consumer Reports, FTC Alleges The Federal...
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Florida Man Sentenced for Conspiracy to Commit Mail Fraud Ex-Wife and Co-Defendant Pleads Guilty to Same Charge U.S. Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that a Florida man charged with conspiracy to commit mail fraud was sentenced on Monday, April 18,...
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FTC Files Contempt Charges Against Marketer of Credit Repair, Debt Relief, Food Stamp Services The Federal Trade Commission has filed contempt charges against a promoter of credit repair and debt relief services and three of his companies, alleging that...
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Former MLB Star Lenny Dykstra Charged in Bankruptcy Fraud Case That Alleges Sale of Items from Mansion Lenny Dykstra, who played outfield for the New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies baseball clubs and later gained notoriety as a stock picker,...
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CVS Pharmacy Inc. Agrees to Pay $17.5 Million to Resolve False Prescription Billing Case CVS Pharmacy Inc., the retail pharmacy division of CVS Caremark Corporation that operates more than 7,000 retail pharmacies in 41 states and the District of Columbia,...
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FTC Cracks Down on Fake News Websites Used to Advertise Acai Berry Weight-Loss Pills Lawsuits Filed Across the United States Millions of consumers are being lured to websites that imitate those of reputable news organizations. The "reporters" on these sites...
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Statement from Governor Cuomo on Sentencing of Alan Hevesi Public integrity was my top priority as New York Attorney General and it is as Governor. For government to work, it must have the trust of the people. Those who hold...
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FTC Charges Marketers with Billing Consumers Without Their Consent; Tricked People Who Were Seeking Payday Loans The Federal Trade Commission charged two men and their companies with unfairly and deceptively billing consumers without their consent, and not providing promised...
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WITH TAX DAY APPROACHING, A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN ASKS NEW YORKERS TO REPORT "PHISHING" EMAIL TAX SCAMS TO HIS OFFICE Specialized Tax Scam Involves Official-Looking Messages Purportedly From IRS or Tax Prep Companies That Solicit Personal or Financial Information Attorney General...
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A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN ENDS SYRACUSE CAR DEALER'S DECEPTIVE AND ILLEGAL PRACTICES Consumers of Spinella's Enterprises Purchased Cars & Drove Off the Lot, Only to Find Out They Never Really Owned the Cars Onondaga County Used Car Dealer Permanently Prohibited from...
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Pawn Shop Owner Sentenced to Prison in Scheme to Launder $20 Million in Proceeds of Stolen Merchandise Admitted Laundering Millions of Dollars in Proceeds of Stolen Over-the-Counter Medicines, Health and Beauty Aid Products, Gift Cards, DVDs, Tools, and Other Items...
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FTC Settlement Collects $2.2 Million, Bans Marketers From Mortgage Relief Business Company Targeted Consumers Facing Foreclosure Under a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission, two companies and three individuals are banned from the mortgage relief services business and must relinquish...
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New Jersey Solid Waste Management Facility Pleads Guilty to Illegal Dumping in Upstate New York Eagle Recycling Defrauded the United States and Violated Clean Water and Wire Fraud Laws Lieze Associates, dba Eagle Recycling of New Jersey, pleaded guilty on...
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Massachusetts Fish Packer Found Guilty of Falsely and Misleadingly Labeling Frozen Fish Fillets Stephen C. Delaney, 55, of Quincy, Mass., was found guilty on April 8, 2011, by a federal jury in Boston of falsely labeling frozen fish fillets...
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G. SCHNEIDERMAN PUTS AN END TO DECEPTIVE, NEVER-ENDING "GOING OUT OF BUSINESS" SALE IN SYRACUSE Syracuse Oriental Rug Company Used Misleading "Going Out Of Business" Sale to Lure Consumers to the Warehouse Under False Pretenses [En Español] Schneiderman: This Should...
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Governor Cuomo Announces New Policies Regarding State Issued Parking Placards following Inspector General Review Last week, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced rigorous new policies for state issued parking placards after a review by State Inspector General Ellen Biben found systemic...
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Brooklyn Rabbi Pleads Guilty to Money Laundering Conspiracy Mordchai Fish, the principal rabbi of Congregation Sheves Achim in Brooklyn, N.Y., admitted today to conspiring to launder approximately $900,000 he believed was criminal proceeds, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced. Fish,...
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FTC Settlement Requires Oreck Corporation to Stop Making False and Unproven Claims That Its Ultraviolet Vacuum and Air Cleaner Can Prevent Illness Marketer Must Pay $750,000 As part of its ongoing efforts to protect consumers from bogus health claims, the...
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Owner of River North Art Gallery and Two Others Indicted for Allegedly Producing and/or Selling Counterfeit Fine Art Prints The owner and an employee of a River North art gallery and a New York man were indicted on federal fraud...
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A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN ANNOUNCES REVIEW OF SYRACUSE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA SHUTDOWN Attorney General's Review Will Seek to Determine Whether Refunds Can Be Made Available to Those Who Purchased Tickets Consumers Are Urged to File Complaints With Attorney General's Office [En Español]...
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Tax Defendant Indicted for Filing False Liens for Billions of Dollars Against Federal Law Enforcement Filed Harassing Documents Against Prosecutors, Investigators and Court Personnel Involved in the Successful 2010 Tax Crimes Trial Against Mark D. Leitner has been indicted by...
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German Security Company Pays U.S. 6,529,042 Euros to Settle False Claims Allegations Securitas GmbH Werkschutz has paid the United States 6,529,042 Euros (approximately $9.1 million) to settle allegations that the German company billed the Army, under contracts to provide security...
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Former Otisville Treasurer Pleads Guilty to Embezzling Town Funds The former Otisville treasurer will serve up to three years in jail and reimburse the village $77,000 after pleading guilty last week in Orange County Court to grand larceny following an investigation...
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Verizon Communications Pays United States $93.5 Million to Resolve False Claims Act Allegations Verizon Communications Inc. has paid the United States $93,525,410.96 in order to resolve allegations that the company overcharged the General Services Administration (GSA) on invoices dealing with...
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Sherman Rivers was accused of trying to sell a piece of real estate which he didn't really own and, in order deliver the building vacant, supposedly paid some thugs to burn the place down. Even though the Kings County Supreme...
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Two Chinese Nationals Charged with Illegally Attempting to Export Military Satellite Components to the PRC Two Chinese nationals have been indicted by a federal grand jury in Alexandria, Va., for attempting to obtain radiation-hardened microchips, which are prohibited defense...
Continue reading "HONG WEI XIAN & LI LI FACE 20 YEARS" »
North Carolina Hospital to Pay U.S. $1.9 Million to Resolve Allegations Related to Kyphoplasty and Other Procedures Rex Healthcare, a 655-bed hospital in Raleigh, N.C., has agreed to pay the United States $1.9 million, plus interest, to settle allegations that...
Continue reading "THESE WHISTLEBLOWERS WILL EARN $80,000" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN SUES ALBANY-BASED COMPANY FOR USING FAKE "GOVERNMENT" NOTICE TO CON SMALL BUSINESSES Company Defrauded Thousands of NY Small Businesses to Believe It Represented NY State Government, Duped Them into Paying for Worthless Document Schneiderman: Companies that...
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Former TBW Financial Analyst Pleads Guilty in $1.5 Billion Fraud Scheme Sean W. Ragland, a former senior financial analyst at Taylor, Bean & Whitaker (TBW), pleaded guilt on Friday to conspiring to commit bank and wire fraud for his role...
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A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN SUES TO STOP USED CAR LOAN BROKER THAT DECEIVED NUMEROUS MOHAWK VALLEY CONSUMERS Car Loan Broker Illegally Required Mohawk Valley Customers to Purchase Unnecessary Extended Warranties to Qualify for Car Loan Schneiderman: My Office will Hold This Company...
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Court Shutters Telemarketers Peddling Bogus Timeshare Resales Defendants Allegedly Claimed They Could Find Timeshare Buyers At the Federal Trade Commission's request, a federal district court has issued a temporary restraining order against a Florida-based telemarketing scheme that allegedly tricked timeshare...
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"PLASTIC SURGEON" HECTOR CABRAL INDICTED FOR PRACTICING MEDICINE WITHOUT A LICENSE [En Español]--> On Wednesday, Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman announced the indictment of Dominican-based "plastic surgeon" Hector Cabral, an unlicensed doctor in the state of New York, who allegedly...
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Alabama Sisters Indicted for Tax Fraud and Identity Theft Charged with Unlawfully Using Others' Social Security Numbers in Order to Obtain Refund Anticipation Loans Loretta and Tracey Fergerson were indicted by a federal grand jury in the Middle District of...
Continue reading "SISTERS FACE 129 YEARS FOR TAX FRAUD" »
FTC Charges Deceptive Privacy Practices in Google's Rollout of Its Buzz Social Network Google Agrees to Implement Comprehensive Privacy Program to Protect Consumer Data Google Inc. has agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that it used deceptive tactics and...
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Jamaican Citizen Pleads Guilty to $220 Million Ponzi Fraud and Money Laundering Charges United States Attorney Robert E. O'Neill announced yesterday that David A. Smith, (41, a Jamaican citizen) who was living in the Turks and Caicos Islands, pleaded guilty to...
Continue reading "HE RAN A $220 MILLION PONZI SCHEME" »
MAYOR BLOOMBERG AND CONSUMER AFFAIRS COMMISSIONER MINTZ ANNOUNCE RESULTS OF CITYWIDE CRACKDOWN ON FRAUDULENT TAX PREPARERS - ONE IN THREE RECEIVE VIOLATIONS Consumer Affairs Finds Compliance Significantly Lower in Low Income Neighborhoods New Yorkers Encouraged to File Taxes for Free...
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FDA Chemist and Son Charged with Trading on Inside Information Yesterday, a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) chemist and his son were arrested in Maryland in connection with an alleged $2.27 million insider trading scheme, announced Assistant Attorney General...
Continue reading "THIS INSIDER INFORMATION MAY LAND THEM INSIDE" »
Federal Court Shuts Down Missouri Tax Preparer Who Promoted Tax Scam Kansas City Man Claimed Fraudulent Tax Refunds Based on Fictitious Tax Withholding A federal court has permanently barred Gerald A. Poynter II of Kansas City, Mo., from preparing federal...
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FTC Charges Cancer "Cures" Marketers with Violating Commission Order At the Federal Trade Commission's request, the U.S. Department of Justice has asked a federal district court to impose civil penalties upon the herbal products company Daniel Chapter One (DCO) and...
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Miami Doctor Sentenced to 24 Months in Prison for Role in $37 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme Involving Miami-Area Home Health Agencies A Miami-area doctor, Fred Dweck, was sentenced to 24 months in prison on Friday for his role in a...
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Towson Title Agency Operator Sentenced to Over Six Years in Prison in $3.9 Million Mortgage Fraud Scheme Failed to Make $3.9 Million in Payoffs to Mortgage Lenders Holding Liens on 13 Properties On Friday, U.S. District Judge Catherine C. Blake...
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Leader of International Lottery Telemarketing Fraud Scheme Sentenced in Manhattan Federal Court to 150 Months in Prison Over $8 Million Was Stolen from Elderly Victims in the United States PREET BHARARA, the United States Attorney for the Southern...
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DC-Area Plumber Charged with Obstructing the IRS Annandale, Va., Resident Indicted for Tax Crimes Richard Jaensch, a resident of Annandale, Va., has been indicted by a Alexandria, Va., federal grand jury with one count of corruptly endeavoring to impede the...
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Governor Cuomo Announces DMV Investigation Leads to the Arrests of Two Commercial Bus Drivers Operating with Suspended Licenses DMV, NYPD and Queens D.A. Use DMV's Facial Recognition System to Identify Drivers with Multiple Licenses Yesterday, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo...
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Barry Minkow Charged with Conspiracy to Manipulate Common Stock of Fortune 500 Company Yesterday, Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and William J. Maddalena, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI),...
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Founder of A&O Entities Convicted in $100 Million Fraud Scheme Christian M. Allmendinger, 39, of Houston, was convicted by a federal jury Wednesday for his role in a $100 million fraud scheme with more than 800 victims across the United...
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FTC To Host Workshop on Protecting Consumers From Lottery, Prize, and Sweepstakes Scams and Other Frauds that Use Money Transfers On May 2-3, 2011, the Federal Trade Commission will host a public workshop in Chicago to examine what more...
Continue reading "ARE YOU A LOSER?" »
Government Attorney Sentenced to Nearly 18 Years in Prison for Taking Hundreds of Thousands of Dollars in Bribes From Immigrants Seeking Status in U.S. A senior attorney with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) was sentenced this morning to 212...
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SCHUMER: LAST MAJOR SYRACUSE CANDLE MAKER AT RISK BECAUSE OF UNFAIRLY TRADED CHINESE CANDLES FLOODING THE MARKET - SCHUMER TO FEDS: MAKE SURE ANTI-DUMPING LAWS STAY STRONG TO KEEP CATHEDRAL CANDLE IN BUSINESS Chinese Companies Are Circumventing U.S. Trade Laws,...
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Alabama Couple Charged with Tax Evasion and Conspiracy A superseding indictment was unsealed against Patricia Ervin and Monty Ervin of Dothan, Ala., charging them with three counts of tax evasion and one count of conspiring to defraud the United...
Continue reading "25 YEARS FOR TAX EVASION?" »
Federal Court Bars Two Los Angeles Residents from Promoting Sham Trust Tax Scheme Court Finds They Help Customers Form "Common-Law Trusts" to Evade Taxes A federal court has issued a preliminary injunction barring Gwenn Wycoff and Frank Ozak,...
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Leading Debt Collector Agrees to Pay Record $2.8 Million to Settle FTC Charges A leading debt collection company has agreed to pay a civil penalty of $2.8 million to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that its aggressive collection techniques...
Continue reading "ASSET WEST TO LOSE $2.8 MILLION OF ITS ASSETS" »
Three Former Executives Charged in $200 Million Fraud Scheme Involving Fair Financial Company Investors Three former executives of Fair Financial Company, an Ohio financial services business, were arrested yesterday and charged in an indictment filed in the Southern District of Indiana...
Continue reading "FAIR FINANCIAL WAS FAR FROM FAIR" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN OFFERS TIPS TO NEW YORKERS DONATING TO JAPAN EARTHQUAKE & TSUNAMI RELIEF EFFORTS A.G. Encourages Generosity, Provides Information to Ensure Donated Dollars Go to Right Place [En Español] Earlier this week, Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman...
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Long Island Pharmacy Bilked State Out of $700,000 The New York State Health Insurance Program (NYSHIP) overpaid Kings Pharmacy of Long Beach by more than $700,000 according to an audit released by State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli. Most of...
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Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services team up in Detroit to crack down on health care fraud Attorney General Holder and Secretary Sebelius host fifth regional health care fraud prevention summit in Michigan Attorney General Eric Holder and...
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Former Treasurer of International Fraternity Sentenced in Connection with Bank Fraud Terry Davis, 43, the former elected National Treasurer of Phi Beta Sigma, an international fraternal organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., has been sentenced to time served of 31 months...
Continue reading "HE STOLE $50K FROM HIS FRATERNITY" »
UBS Client Sentenced in San Diego for Hiding Assets in Secret Bahamian and Swiss Bank Accounts Jeffrey Chatfield of San Diego was sentenced before U.S. District Judge Michael M. Anello to three years probation for hiding assets in secret offshore...
Continue reading "FUBAR ON FBARS?" »
When Sehera Food Services signed its lease, tourists looking to buy tickets for the Empire State Building's Observation Deck had to walk past Apple CafÈ, the company's store. When it later learned there were plans to relocate the ticket office,...
Continue reading "THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN ANNOUNCES LANDMARK $3.1 MILLION SETTLEMENT WITH MAJOR PHARMACEUTICAL CO. FOR DECEPTIVE ADVERTISING OF DRUG SEROQUEL AstraZeneca Marketed Drug for Unauthorized Uses & Failed to Disclose Serious Potential Side Effects Settlement Part of a Record $68.5 Million, 37-State...
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Houston-Area Resident Sentenced to 41 Months in Prison for Medicare Fraud Scheme Involving Claims of Hurricane Damage to Power Wheelchairs Helen Etinfoh, the former owner and operator of a Houston durable medical equipment (DME) company was sentenced last week to...
Continue reading "LADY GETS 41 MONTHS FOR WHEELCHAIR SCAM" »
Couple Arrested on Federal Charges of Bilking Banks Out of $130 Million in Line of Credit Scam A Newport Coast (California) couple were arrested yesterday after being indicted on federal charges of defrauding a consortium of eight banks, including Bank of...
Continue reading "BUSINESS BILKED BANKS OUT OF $130 MILLION" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN SUES FORMER TROY PHOTOGRAPHER FOR FAILING TO DELIVER WEDDING DAY ALBUMS Photographer Cheated Newlyweds out of Thousands of Dollars As Part of National Consumer Week, A.G. Also Offers Tips to Couples Hiring Wedding Photographers Yesterday, Attorney General...
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FTC Roundtables Will Address Consumer Issues in Motor Vehicle Financing and Leasing First Roundtable to be Held April 12 in Detroit Starting next month, the Federal Trade Commission will host a series of roundtables around the country to gather information...
Continue reading "FTC LOOKS INTO FINANCING OF CARS, SUVS & TRUCKS" »
Twelve Arizonans Indicted in Multi-Million-Dollar Mortgage Fraud Schemes $19 Million in Fraudulently Obtained Loans Yesterday, U.S. Attorney Dennis Burke announced two indictments charging 12 Arizonans for their involvement in multi-million-dollar mortgage fraud conspiracies. Between the two cases, the defendants fraudulently...
Continue reading "MORTGAGE SCAM MAY BUY THEM 20-YEAR TERM" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN SECURES $1.1 MILLION FOR NEW YORKERS DEFRAUDED BY "DEBT SETTLEMENT" COMPANY Program Offered Debt Relief but Left Many in Same or Worse Financial Standing Current Customers Eligible to Receive Hundreds of Thousands Dollars In Refunds Kicking Off National...
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FTC Releases List of Top Consumer Complaints in 2010; Identity Theft Tops the List Again Yesterday, the Federal Trade Commission released the list of top consumer complaints received by the agency in 2010. The list showed that for the 11th...
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TO MARK NATIONAL CONSUMER PROTECTION WEEK, A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN RELEASES NYS TOP TEN FRAUDS OF 2010 A.G. Gives Tips to Beat Scams, Including Internet and Credit Issues - The Top Two Frauds Will Unveil Series of Consumer-Based Announcements in Coming...
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Leader of Fraudulent Driver's License Scheme Sentenced Defendant Conspired with Georgia Driver's License Examiner and Chinese Nationals to Issue Hundreds of Fraudulent Georgia Driver's Licenses to Illegal Aliens ZHONG LIANG LI a/k/a KEN LI, 34, of Brooklyn, New York, was...
Continue reading "SELLING PHONY LICENSES GOT HIM 4 YEARS" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN ANNOUNCES CRACKDOWN ON DANGEROUS UPS TRUCKS, SECURES $1.3 MILLION IN SETTLEMENT Settlement Changes UPS Inspection Methods After Mechanics Passed Rotting & Decaying Trucks Schneiderman: UPS Endangered Public by Knowingly Keeping Dangerous Trucks in Service [En Español] On Wednesday, Attorney General...
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Maryland Man Pleads Guilty in Bribery Scheme Aimed at Dominating District of Columbia's Taxicab Industry Scheme Involved $360,000 in Illegal Payments On Tuesday, Yitbarek Syume, 53, of Silver Spring, Maryland, pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit bribery, bribery, and mail...
Continue reading "45 YEARS FOR BRIBERY?" »
Alabama Man Sentenced to 36 Months in Prison for Tax Fraud and Identity Theft Jeffery Leon Ceaser, a resident of Montgomery County, Ala., was sentenced yesterday to 36 months in prison, the Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced...
Continue reading "THREE YEARS FOR TAX FRAUD" »
Forest Pharmaceuticals Sentenced to Pay $164 Million for Criminal Violations Drug manufacturer Forest Pharmaceuticals Inc. was sentenced on Wednesday by U.S. District Judge Nancy Gertner to pay a criminal fine of $150 million and forfeit assets of $14 million following the company's...
Continue reading "WHAT FOREST PHARMACEUTICALS DID WAS CRIMINAL" »
New York Pension Funds Settle Countrywide Financial Corporation Litigation for $624 Million Last week, the New York State Common Retirement Fund and the five New York City public pension funds announced the $624 million settlement of the Countrywide Financial Corporation...
Continue reading "COUNTRYWIDE FINANCIAL TO FORK OVER $624 MILLION" »
Principal of $80 Million Ponzi Scheme Sentenced in Manhattan Federal Court to 97 Months in Prison PREET BHARARA, United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that VANCE MOORE, II was sentenced on Monday to 97 months in prison...
Continue reading "ONLY 97 MONTHS FOR $80 MILLION ATM SCAM" »
A.G. Schneiderman Secures Guilty Plea in Local "Hidden Camera" Nursing Home Investigation Troy Health Care Worker Pleads Guilty After Being Caught on Hidden Camera Neglecting & Endangering Patient Schneiderman: We Will Hold Accountable Anyone Who Preys on Vulnerable New...
Continue reading "CAMERA RECORDS PATIENT ABUSE" »
When the First National Bank of Nevada started a foreclosure proceeding, the Administratrix of the Estate of Kathy Briggs challenged the validity of the debt and the underlying transaction. While the Queens County Supreme Court found in the bank's favor,...
Continue reading "DEAD WOMAN SIGNING" »
Douglas F. Vaughan Indicted in Ponzi Scheme Vaughan Allegedly Swindled $76 Million From Approximately 600 Investors Douglas F. Vaughan, 63, has been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges stemming from a fraudulent investment operation that was actually a...
Continue reading "A $76 MILLION PONZI SCHEME" »
Nigerian National Sentenced in North Carolina to 108 Months in Prison for Role in Advance Fee Fraud Scheme Ugochukwu Enwerem, aka Joseph Smith, was sentenced on Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Charlotte, N.C., to 108 months in prison for...
Continue reading "NEFARIOUS NIGERIAN NATIONAL NETTED $9.5 MILLION" »
South Florida Man Pleads Guilty to Tax Fraud Ruben Reyes, a South Florida resident, pleaded guilty yesterday to one count of filing a false tax return, the Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced. According to court documents, Reyes...
Continue reading "HE COULD EARN THREE YEARS FOR THIS TAX SCAM" »
Romeo Home Builder Gets Jail Time in Mortgage Fraud Scheme Giuseppe Cracchiolo, 60, of Romeo, Michigan, was sentenced for his role in a mortgage fraud scheme to six months' imprisonment, followed by three years' supervised release, United States Attorney Barbara...
Continue reading "HOME BUILDER STOLE MILLIONS" »
Vivian Kleinerman was in the process of renovating her apartment when her co-op issued a stop-work order (claiming the work hadn't been approved). In a lawsuit filed against the cooperative, Kleinerman argued that the Board's actions were retaliatory in nature...
Continue reading "REALLY SUPER?" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN RECOVERS $2.5 MILLION FOR TAXPAYERS FROM PHARMACEUTICAL COMPANY THAT INFLATED DRUG PRICES Pharmacia Corporation Overcharged State Health Care Providers Millions for Medication Multimillion Dollar Medicaid Recovery Follows Schneiderman's Initiative to Strengthen Medicaid Fraud Control Unit & Protect...
Continue reading "PHARMACIA GIVES NEW YORK $2.5 MILLION BACK" »
Medicare Fraud Strike Force Charges 111 Individuals for more than $225 Million in False Billing and Expands Operations to Two Additional Cities Doctors, Nurses, Health Care Company Owners and Executives Among the Defendants Charged; Law Enforcement Agents Execute 16 Search...
Continue reading "111 CHARGED WITH HEALTH-CARE FRAUD" »
Chicago Options Trader Allegedly Swindled More Than $600,000 in Investment Fraud Scheme A Chicago options trader was taken into federal custody on Wednesday after he turned himself in for allegedly engaging in an investment fraud scheme in which he swindled...
Continue reading "OPTIONS TRADER WAS A SWINDLER" »
More Than 100 Members and Associates of Transnational Organized Crime Groups Charged with Offenses Including Bank Fraud, Kidnapping, Racketeering and Health Care Fraud Six Indictments Returned in Los Angeles-area, Miami and Denver Allege Widespread Criminal Conduct by Members of Armenian...
Continue reading "DOJ BATTLES ARMENIAN POWER" »
Two Individuals Plead Guilty in Connection with Costa Rica-based Business Opportunity Fraud Ventures Operation Had Connections to Colorado, Florida, New Mexico, Nevada and Pennsylvania Two individuals pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud for their roles in...
Continue reading "THESE SCAMMERS ARE GOING AWAY" »
Dear Lucas, Last week, many of us were outraged when Planned Parenthood was viciously and unfairly attacked by the radical conservative group Live Action. While Planned Parenthood has been dedicated to defending the rights of women, Live Action by...
Continue reading "DEFENDING PLANNED PARENTHOOD" »
Kingston Officer Defrauding Public in "Double Dipping" Scheme Officer Claimed to be Working for the City and School District Simultaneously A City of Kingston Police Officer claimed he was working as a detective for the city and providing security for...
Continue reading "DINAPOLI SCOOPS UP A DOUBLE-DIPPER" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN ANNOUNCES ARREST OF FORMER ROCHESTER PHARMACIST IN $191,000 MEDICAID FRAUD CASE More than $191,000 for Prescriptions Improperly Dispensed by Unlicensed Pharmacist Arrest Follows Launch of Major AG Initiative to Bolster Medicaid Fraud Control Unit and Protect Taxpayers...
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These poll numbers were released earlier today by Rasmussen Reports -- "an electronic publishing firm specializing in the collection, publication, and distribution of public opinion polling information." Importance of Issues Economy, Health Care Still Top Voters' List of Important Issues...
Continue reading "THE ECONOMY IS JOB 1" »
Rhode Island Woman Pleads Guilty to Smuggling Misbranded Drugs from China A Providence woman pleaded guilty Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Providence to smuggling erectile dysfunction drugs from the People's Republic of China which were falsely labeled as herbal...
Continue reading "SHE SOLD MISLABELLED HERBS" »
Former Staff Member in U.S. House of Representatives Convicted on Corruption Charges Yesterday, a federal jury in the District of Columbia convicted a former staff member in the U.S. House of Representatives on corruption charges relating to his acceptance...
Continue reading "STAFFER FACES YEARS IN PRISON FOR "ILLEGAL GRATUITY"" »
North Carolina Man Pleads Guilty to Using Stolen Identities in New England A North Carolina man was convicted on Wednesday in federal court of conspiring with others to obtain fake identification cards using stolen identities, which were then used to...
Continue reading "SEVEN YEARS FOR IDENTITY THEFT" »
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Charges Three Hedge Fund Portfolio Managers and One Analyst with Insider Trading Two of the Hedge Fund Managers Are Also Charged with Obstruction of JusticeThe Third Hedge Fund Manager and Analyst Have Already Pled Guilty to Insider...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL SCHNEIDERMAN ANNOUNCES SENTENCING OF BROOME COUNTY RESIDENT FOR BILKING MEDICAID FOR OVER $50,000 Sentencing Follows the Launch of Major AG Initiative to Bolster Medicaid Fraud Control Unit and Protect Taxpayers Yesterday, Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman announced...
Continue reading "SHE BILKED $59,000 FROM MEDICAID" »
Three Indicted for Selling Mislabeled Steroids Christopher R. Thyer, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas; and Patrick J. Holland, Special Agent in Charge of the Food and Drug Administration, Office of Criminal Investigations, Kansas City Field...
Continue reading "ISN'T THIS EXTREME?" »
Federal Court Shuts Down Colorado Tax Preparer Denver-Area Man Claimed More Than $56 Million in Bogus Tax Refunds Based on Frivolous Tax Defier Scheme A federal court in Denver has permanently barred Curtis L. Morris of Elizabeth, Colo., from preparing...
Continue reading "HIS NUMBERS WENT "BEYOND" ...." »
Former Houston Gas Trader Pleads Guilty in $7.9 Million Wire Fraud Case Former Houston gas trader Stephanie Roqumore has pleaded guilty to two counts of wire fraud arising from her scheme to defraud numerous natural gas trading companies of nearly...
Continue reading "FRAUDULENT TRADER WAS FULL OF GAS" »
Former Dow Research Scientist Convicted of Stealing Trade Secrets and Perjury A federal jury in Baton Rouge, La., today convicted a former research scientist of stealing trade secrets from Dow Chemical Company and selling them to companies in the People's...
Continue reading "TEN YEARS FOR STEALING TRADE SECRETS (AND LYING ABOUT IT)" »
Eight Miami-Area Nurses Sentenced to Prison for $18.7 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme Involving Home Health Care Eight Miami-area nurses were sentenced to prison on Friday for their roles in an $18.7 million Medicare fraud scheme involving home health care, announced...
Continue reading "NURSES GET UP TO 30 MONTHS FOR FRAUD" »
Brookwood Man Faces 34-Count Federal Indictment in Mortgage Fraud Scheme A federal grand jury today indicted a Brookwood man on wire fraud and false statement charges related to a more than $1 million mortgage fraud scheme in the Birmingham area,...
Continue reading "20 YEARS FOR MORTGAGE FRAUD" »
Employee of U.S. Embassy in Baghdad Convicted of Stealing Nearly $250,000 WASHINGTON - An employee of the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, Iraq, was found guilty on Wednesday by a jury in Alexandria, Va., of stealing nearly $250,000 intended for the payment of...
Continue reading "EMBASSY EMPLOYEE STOLE $250,000" »
DiNapoli Proposes Pension Forfeiture Bill Calls for Severe Penalties for Abuse of Public Trust Public officials stand to lose pension benefits if they commit a felony related to the performance of their duties under a bill proposed last week by State...
Continue reading "BAD PUBLIC OFFICIALS SHOULD LOSE PENSIONS" »
The Real Albany Sham: The Budget By Governor Andrew Cuomo (January 31, 2011)As Attorney General, I uncovered schemes by lenders to exploit students, plots by insurance companies to defraud patients and attempts by Wall Street to deceive homebuyers. In the...
Continue reading "IT'S ABOUT OUR VALUES AND OUR FUTURE" »
United States Files Suit Against Guidant and Boston Scientific for Selling Defective Heart Devices That Were Implanted in Medicare Patients Late last week, the United States has filed a complaint against Boston Scientific Corp. and related Guidant entities under the...
Continue reading "THEY SOLD DEFECTIVE HEART DEVICES?" »
Patient Recruiter Sentenced to 40 Months in Prison for His Role in a Fraudulent Diagnostic Testing Scheme A Detroit-area patient recruiter was sentenced on Wednesday to 40 months in prison for his role in a conspiracy to defraud the Medicare program, the...
Continue reading "40 MONTHS FOR UNNECESSARY MEDICAL TESTS" »
A.G. SCHNEIDERMAN LAUNCHES NEW INITIATIVE TO BOLSTER RECOVERY OF TAXPAYER DOLLARS & FIGHT GOVERNMENT FRAUD A.G. Will Establish a New "Taxpayer Protection Unit" to Target Pension Rip-Offs, Corrupt Government Contractors, & Large Scale Tax Cheats New Initiative Also Includes...
Continue reading "SCHNEIDERMAN'S GOT A "NEW INITIATIVE"" »
SCHUMER, NADLER CALL FOR CRACKDOWNON MAKERS OF PHONY 9/11 COMMEMORATIVE COINS; COMPANY IS RAKING IN MILLIONS FROM NATIONAL TRAGEDY AND ROBBING 9/11 MEMORIAL OF MUCH NEEDED FUNDS National Collector's Mint, Convicted Of Fraud In 2004, Is Peddling New 10th Anniversary...
Continue reading ""NATIONAL COLLECTOR'S MINT HAS NO SHAME."" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL SCHNEIDERMAN SUES EXTREME SNOWPLOWING FOR DEFRAUDING WESTERN NY CONSUMERS A.G. Takes Action to Protect Hundreds Who Were Left Stranded After Major Snowstorms Schneiderman: To Defraud Western New Yorkers and Leave Them Stranded in Several Feet of Snow...
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Health care fraud prevention and enforcement efforts recover record $4 billion; new Affordable Care Act tools will help fight fraud Joint DOJ & HHS efforts result in largest sum ever recovered in single year; new rules under the Affordable Care...
Continue reading "ELIMINATING FRAUD, WASTE AND ABUSE -- A TOP PRIORITY FOR OBAMA" »
Minnesota-Based St. Jude Medical Pays U.S. $16 Million to Settle Claims that Company Paid Kickbacks to Physicians Late last week, St. Jude Medical Inc. of St. Paul, Minn., agreed to pay the United States $16 million to resolve allegations...
Continue reading "ST JUDE WAS NO SAINT" »
Two Owners of Houston Health Care Company Plead Guilty to Alleged $5.2 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme Two owners of a Houston health care company pleaded guilty yesterday in connection with an alleged $5.2 million Medicare fraud scheme, announced the Departments...
Continue reading "10 YEARS FOR HEALTH CARE FRAUD?" »
Belarusian National Pleads Guilty to International Online Scheme to Steal U.S. Tax Refunds A Belarusian national and resident of Nantucket, Mass., pleaded guilty on Wednesday to charges stemming from his participation in an international online scheme to steal income tax refunds...
Continue reading "HE STOLE TAX REFUNDS" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL SCHNEIDERMAN ANNOUNCES $18 MILLION MEDICAID FRAUD SETTLEMENT WITH STATE'S LARGEST RESIDENTIAL SERVICE PROVIDER Young Adult Institute Inflated Expenses to Justify Reimbursement of Excess Medicaid Dollars Schneiderman: Anyone Who Tries to Defraud New York Taxpayers Will Face Zero Tolerance...
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Co-Founder of Casino-Cheating Criminal Enterprise Pleads Guilty to Racketeering Conspiracy Targeting Casinos Across the United States The co-founder of a criminal enterprise known as the Tran Organization pled guilty on Friday in San Diego to conspiring to participate in the organization's scheme...
Continue reading "CASINO CARD CHEAT CONSPIRACY CEASED" »
Queens Attorney Pleads Guilty in Manhattan Federal Court to Participating in $23 Million Mortgage Fraud Scheme PREET BHARARA, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that CHEDDI GOBERDHAN, a real estate attorney, pled guilty on Monday before...
Continue reading "OPERATION BAD DEEDS STRIKES AGAIN" »
Detroit Area Strip Club Owner Pleads Guilty to Using Computer Software Program to Delete Club's Sales in Order to Cheat on Taxes Nicholas J. Faranso of Farmington Hills, Mich., pleaded guilty on Wednesday before U.S. District Court Judge John Corbett...
Continue reading "NO STRIPPING AWAY HIS TAX LIABILITY" »
Pennsylvania Odometer Tamperer Sentenced to 100 Months in Prison Ordered to Pay More Than $4 Million in Restitution On Tuesday, Yakov Babchinetskiy, 43, of Huntingdon Valley, Pa., was sentenced in Philadelphia by U.S. District Court Judge Legrome D. Davis...
Continue reading "TAMPERER GETS 100 MONTHS" »
Former NASA Employee Charged with Illegally Exporting Military Technology to South Korea An Ohio man was charged with illegally shipping infrared military technology to South Korea, the Department of Justice announced on Monday. A criminal information was filed charging...
Continue reading "HE SOLD MILITARY STUFF TO SOUTH KOREA" »
Federal Court Permanently Bars Florida Woman from Preparing Federal Tax Returns for Others Pembroke Pines Woman Allegedly Claimed Improper First Time Homebuyer Credits and Other Items On Customers' Returns A federal court has permanently barred Dianelys Armengol Guevara...
Continue reading "PHONY TAX CREDITS GOT HER BARRED" »
Former Haven Health Care Bookkeeper Pleads Guilty to Fraud and Tax Charges David B. Fein, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that SERENA SYLVIA, 42, of Fargo Road, Waterford, waived her right to indictment and pled...
Continue reading "SHE STOLE FROM NURSING HOME RESIDENTS" »
U.S. Department of Transportation Provides Guidance to Airlines, Ticket Agents on Code-Share Disclosure Requirements On Monday, the U.S. Department of Transportation's (DOT) Aviation Enforcement Office provided guidance to airlines and ticket agents about the requirement for notifying passengers if a...
Continue reading "SHARE THE CODE!" »
FDA warns public of continued extortion scam by FDA impersonators The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is warning the public about criminals posing as FDA special agents and other law enforcement personnel as part of a continued international extortion scam....
Continue reading "BEWARE OF THESE IMPERSONATORS!" »
Former Investment Adviser Pleads Guilty in Manhattan Federal Court to Insider Trading and Forfeits More Than $1.4 Million A registered investment adviser pled guilty last week to conspiracy and securities fraud charges in connection with his participation in an insider...
Continue reading "INVESTMENT ADVISOR LOSES $1.4 MILLION" »
Former U.S. Army Staff Sergeant Sentenced to 90 Months in Prison for Bribery in Afghanistan Fuel Theft Scheme A former U.S. Army staff sergeant was sentenced last week to 90 months in prison in connection with a fuel theft...
Continue reading "90 MONTHS FOR ARMY FUEL THEFT" »
Wife of Convicted Felon Thomas Parenteau Sentenced in Ohio to 33 Months in Prison for Money Laundering Conspiracy Co-Conspirator Described by Witnesses as Thomas Parenteau's Mistress Receives 24 Month Prison Sentence Marsha Parenteau of Dublin, Ohio, has been...
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Former CIA Officer Arrested for Alleged Unauthorized Disclosure of National Defense Information and Obstruction of Justice A former CIA officer was arrested yesterday on charges that he illegally disclosed national defense information and obstructed justice, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A....
Continue reading "CIA OFFICER ARRESTED FOR LEAKS" »
MAYOR BLOOMBERG AND DOI COMMISSIONER ROSE GILL HEARN ANNOUNCE $5 MILLION PAYMENT FROM BOVIS TO CITY DOI Investigation of Overcharges on Construction Projects Results in Settlement Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and Department of Investigation Commissioner Rose Gill Hearn announced on Wednesday that...
Continue reading "BOVIS TO FORK OVER $5 MILLION TO NYC" »
Seven Hospitals in Six States to Pay U.S. More Than $6.3 Million to Resolve False Claims Act Allegations Related to Kyphoplasty Seven hospitals located in Florida, Mississippi, Texas, South Carolina, North Carolina and Alabama have agreed to pay the United...
Continue reading "FRAUD COST THESE HOSPITALS $6.3 MILLION" »
Executive Director of the Havre De Grace Housing Authority Pleads Guilty to Bribery Crossed a "Bright Line" by Taking Payments from a Government Contractor On Monday, George R. Robinson, age 61, of Bel Air, Maryland, pleaded guilty to bribery of a...
Continue reading "THIS COULD KICK HIM BACK 15 YEARS" »
27,000 From Scrap Material Processing Missing in Western NY An audit of 10 municipalities in western New York found that more than $27,000 in scrap material proceeds is missing, according to an audit released on Monday by State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli....
Continue reading "NO SCRAPPING THIS" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES AGREEMENT WITH STEVEN RATTNER FORMER FOUNDING PRINCIPAL OF QUADRANGLE IN PUBLIC PENSION FUND INVESTIGATION Late last week, Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo announced an agreement with Steven Rattner, former founding principal of private equity firm...
Continue reading "RATTNER TO PAY $10 MILLION" »
Secretary Sebelius highlights 2010 accomplishments of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services New video covers implementation of the Affordable Care Act; efforts to reduce fraud and waste; public health initiatives to address obesity, tobacco use and food safety....
Continue reading "SEBELIUS SURE IS PROUD OF HER ACCOMPLISHMENTS" »
Powell Man Sentenced for Selling More Than 35,000 Illegally Copied Videogames Over the Internet Qiang "Michael" Bi, 36, of Powell was sentenced in United States District Court here to 30 months incarceration for selling more than 35,000 illegally copied computer...
Continue reading "COPYING VIDEOGAMES GETS BI PRISON" »
Construction Company Padded Contracts by More Than a Quarter Million Dollars Investigation Uncovers Fraudulent Billing and Forged Documents A Suffolk County contractor overbilled the state by more than $272,000 for emergency construction jobs, a joint investigation by Inspector General Joseph...
Continue reading "CONSTRUCTION COMPANY CAUGHT CHEATING" »
Alcatel-Lucent S.A. and Three Subsidiaries Agree to Pay $92 Million to Resolve Foreign Corrupt Practices Act Investigation Coordinated Enforcement Actions by Department of Justice and SEC Result in Penalties of more than $137 Million Alcatel-Lucent S.A. and three...
Continue reading "THIS IS PRETTY CORRUPT" »
DiNapoli Rejects SAIC Contract Cites CityTime Scandal Last week, State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli announced his office had rejected a contract between the New York City Transit Authority and Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC). The $118 million contract for...
Continue reading "STATE SACKS SAIC" »
Former UBS Investment Banker Pleads Guilty in Manhattan Federal Court to Insider Trading Charges PREET BHARARA, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that IGOR POTEROBA, a former investment banker in the Health Care Group...
Continue reading "PERTURBING POTEROBA" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO SUES ERNST & YOUNG FOR ASSISTING LEHMAN BROTHERS IN FINANCIAL FRAUD Ernst & Young gave clean audit opinions as auditor of Lehman Brothers despite knowing that Lehman fraudulently concealed "Repo 105" transactions On Tuesday, Attorney General Andrew...
Continue reading "CUOMO SUES ERNST & YOUNG FOR ACCOUNTING FRAUD" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES ARREST OF FORMER NEW YORK STATE FAIR DIRECTOR Former State Fair Director Peter Cappuccilli, Jr. Charged with Grand Larceny, Defrauding the Government, and Official Misconduct Cuomo Issues Recommendations to Reform State Fair Operations Yesterday, Attorney General...
Continue reading "STATE FAIR! (NOT THE MUSICAL)" »
Lucas,In 2006, Washington, D.C., was rocked by the biggest political corruption scandal since Watergate. Lobbyist Jack Abramoff was thrown in jail for defrauding Indian tribes of millions of dollars and buying off members of Congress. Rep. Bob Ney (R-Ohio) soon...
Continue reading "YOU DON'T KNOW CASINO JACK" »
Peekskill Needs To Improve Oversight of Its Business Improvement District The City of Peekskill's Business Improvement District (BID) is at risk of not meeting its goals and properly safeguarding cash due to the lack of a written agreement with...
Continue reading "IMPROVING PEEKSKILL'S BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT" »
Owner of Detroit-area Medical Clinic Sentenced to 151 Months in Prison for $23 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme Vice President of Clinic Sentenced to 108 Months in Prison The owner and the vice president of a Detroit-area physical therapy...
Continue reading "MEDICARE FRAUDSTERS ARE HEADING TO JAIL" »
NEW YORK STATE SENATOR AND HIS SON CHARGED WITH EMBEZZLING FUNDS FROM NOT-FOR-PROFIT BRONX HEALTH CARE CENTERS On Tuesday, a federal grand jury in Brooklyn returned an indictment charging Pedro Espada, Jr., a New York State Senator for the 33rd...
Continue reading "EMBEZZLING ESPADAS?" »
Former Manhattan Financial Adviser Pleads Guilty in White Plains Federal Court to Participating in Conspiracy to Defraud Guardians of Disabled Children PREET BHARARA, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and JANICE K. FEDARCYK, the Assistant...
Continue reading "HE DEFRAUDED DISABLED?" »
Florida Man and Two U.K. Nationals Plead Guilty in Relation to Immigration Fraud Scheme Involving Florida Property Development Company A Florida man and two U.K. nationals pleaded guilty Dec.10, 2010, to immigration fraud charges for their roles in a scheme...
Continue reading "A NOT VERY ROYAL SCHEME" »
DiNapoli Warns of Mysterious Sweepstakes Scam Using Fake State ChecksLast week, New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli warned of a mysterious sweepstakes scam involving fraudulent checks that appear to have been issued by New York State. "These days...
Continue reading "STATE'S SWEEPSTAKES SCAM" »
Former Canopy Financial Co-Founder Pleads Guilty to $75 Million Investment Fraud and Misappropriation from Custodial Health Care Expense Accounts of 1,600 Customers A co-founder of Canopy Financial, Inc., a bankrupt health care transaction software company based here, pleaded guilty on Friday to...
Continue reading "HE STOLE $93 MILLION" »
SCHUMER: LI-BASED COMPANY D'ADDARIO, WORLD'S LEADING GUITAR STRING MANUFACTURER EMPLOYING 800, THREATENED BECAUSE OF CHINESE COUNTERFEIT OPERATION; CALLS ON FEDS TO ACT IMMEDIATELY World's Leading Guitar String Maker, D'Addario, Employs Hundreds, But Pervasive Counterfeiting Operation in China Costs The Company...
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Former Paint Manufacturing Chemist Sentenced to 15 Months in Prison for Stealing Trade Secrets Valued up to $20 Million A former chemist for a northwest suburban paint manufacturing company was sentenced today to 15 months in federal prison for stealing...
Continue reading "CHEMIST SENTENCED FOR STEALING FORMULAS" »
Kos Pharmaceuticals to Pay More Than $41 Million to Resolve Kickback and Off-Label Promotion Allegations Kos Pharmaceuticals, a subsidiary of Abbott Laboratories, has agreed to pay more than $41 million to resolve criminal and civil liability arising from conduct relating...
Continue reading "KOS GET KICKED FOR $41 MILLION" »
Former Treasurer of National Republican Congressional Committee Sentenced to Over Three Years in Prison for Embezzling $844,718 from Political Committees District of Columbia Prosecution Supervised by Maryland U.S. Attorney's Office Last week, U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly sentenced Christopher J....
Continue reading "A REPUBLICAN EMBEZZLER" »
SCHUMER BILL TO PROTECT AMERICAN FASHION INDUSTRY FROM OVERSEAS COPY-CATS PASSES JUDICIARY COMMITTEE Schumer's Legislation Protects Unique Fashion Designs From Being Copied And Turned Into Knock-Offs; Bill Protects NY Jobs By Giving NY Fashion Industry Same Protections as European CounterpartsUnanimous...
Continue reading "SCHUMER'S INTO FASHION" »
Former Quest CFO to Serve 16 Years in Prison for Defrauding Company Sentence Took Into Account Other Fraud Schemes Earlier this week, DAVID GROSE, 58, of Edmond, Oklahoma, was sentenced by United States District Judge Stephen P. Friot to serve...
Continue reading "OIL MAN GETS 192 MONTHS FOR FRAUD" »
Federal Courts Order Seizure of 82 Website Domains Involved in Selling Counterfeit Goods as Part of DOJ and ICE Cyber Monday Crackdown Seizure orders were executed against 82 domain names of commercial websites engaged in the illegal sale and distribution of...
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Open Enrollment for 2011 Medicare prescription drug and health plans has begun CMS encourages beneficiaries to review coverage The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is encouraging all Medicare beneficiaries to take advantage of the annual Open Enrollment period to...
Continue reading "ARE YOU ENROLLED?" »
CUOMO ANNOUNCES FELONY GUILTY PLEA BY HANK MORRIS, THE CHIEF POLITICAL ADVISER TO FORMER COMPTROLLER ALAN HEVESI, IN PAY-TO-PLAY PENSION FUND KICKBACK SCHEME Morris Reaped Millions of Dollars in Fees on Investments Approved by Hevesi ~Morris Will Forfeit $19 Million...
Continue reading "HANK MORRIS FACES UP TO 4 YEARS IN THE CLINKER" »
Former New York Con Edison Manager Pleads Guilty to Fraud, Bribery and Tax Charges A former Consolidated Edison of New York (Con Edison) manager pleaded guilty last week to charges that he accepted and agreed to accept approximately $807,000 in bribes...
Continue reading "CON ED GUY TOOK OVER $800K IN BRIBES" »
Dear Lucas,I wanted to take a moment to update you on my newest responsibility in the City Council: I am happy to announce that earlier today, my colleagues elected me to chair the Committee on Consumer Affairs. As my first order...
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Rochester, New York, Contractor Convicted of Illegal Asbestos Removal and False Statements to OSHA A jury in Rochester, N.Y., convicted Keith Gordon-Smith, and his Rochester-based asbestos abatement company, Gordon-Smith Contracting, Inc. (GSCI) of eight counts of knowing violations of the...
Continue reading "ILLEGAL ASBESTOS REMOVAL WILL COST THEM MILLIONS" »
Tennessee Man Sentenced for Illegally Accessing Former Governor Sarah Palin's E-Mail Account and Obstruction of Justice Late last week, David C. Kernell, 23, was sentenced to one year and one day in prison for intentionally accessing without authorization the...
Continue reading "KID SENTENCED FOR HACKING PALIN" »
Pharmaceutical Company Lawyer Charged with Obstruction and Making False Statements Earlier this week, the Justice Department announced that an attorney for a major pharmaceutical company was charged with obstruction and making false statements. Lauren Stevens of Durham, N.C., was charged...
Continue reading "DID SHE OBSTRUCT JUSTICE?" »
Unique Vacations Fined for Violating DOT Price Advertising Rules Yesterday, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) assessed a civil penalty against the ticket agent Unique Vacations for violating the Department's rules for advertising the price of air travel. The company...
Continue reading "NOW THIS IS UNIQUE" »
Department of Health and Human Services and Department of Justice team up to crack down on health care fraud Secretary Sebelius and Attorney General Holder host third regional health care fraud prevention summit in Brooklyn, New York Late last week, the...
Continue reading "COMBATTING HEALTH CARE FRAUD" »
Illinois Producer and Missouri Distributor to Pay Civil Penalties for Pair of Misbranded Disinfectant and Sanitizer Products An Illinois manufacturer and registrant for two disinfectant and sanitizer products, and a Missouri company that served as an authorized distributor of...
Continue reading "SLAPPED FOR MISBRANDING DISINFECTANTS & SANITIZERS" »
DiNapoli Public Authority Spotlight: Urban Development Corp. Hundreds of Millions Spent on No-Bid Contracts and High Salaries The Urban Development Corp. awarded $344.9 million in contracts in fiscal year 2008-09 without seeking competitive bids and paid 28 percent of...
Continue reading "HAS UDC BEEN WASTEFUL?" »
SCHUMER REVEALS: PHONY CHINESE ORGANICS THREATEN TO UNDERMINE LUCRATIVE AND GROWING ORGANIC FOOD INDUSTRY IN SULLIVAN COUNTY - DEMANDS USDA STEP UP ENFORCEMENT OF IMPORTED GOODS Reports of Falsely Labeled Products Demonstrate Threat to American Farmers and Consumers if USDA...
Continue reading "THE CHINESE ARE DEVOURING OUR ORGANIC FOOD INDUSTRY" »
Government takes action against Montana drug manufacturer Company is charged with selling unapproved drugs The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced last week that Toby McAdam and Greta Armstrong, doing business as Risingsun Health and The Center for Complimentary and...
Continue reading "FALL OF THE RISINGSUN" »
$14,000 Misappropriated From 3 Hudson Valley Justice Courts Lax Financial Safeguards at Hudson Valley Justice Courts Need to be Fixed Inadequate financial controls over taxpayer money at three justice courts in the Hudson Valley allowed a total of $14,000...
Continue reading "WHO RIPPED OFF THE HUDSON VALLEY JUSTICE COURTS?" »
Comptrollers DiNapoli & Liu Express Support for National Approach to Fix Foreclosure Problem Last week, State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli and New York City Comptroller John C. Liu expressed their support for the nationwide coordinated investigation launched to address...
Continue reading "DINAPOLI & LIU CHIME IN ON "ROBO-CLOSURES"" »
New York Air Monitoring Firm, Supervisors Found Guilty of Fraud and Conspiracy The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Justice Department announced yesterday that a federal jury in Utica, New York has found Certified Environmental Services, Inc. (CES),...
Continue reading "AIR MONITORING FIRM FOUND GUILTY OF FRAUD" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO EXPANDS PROBE OF NEW YORK FORECLOSURE ACTIONS Demands information from Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase, Wells Fargo and GMAC Mortgage/Ally ~Calls for suspension of foreclosures by mortgage servicers engaged in "robo-signing" in New York until...
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Former Otisville Treasurer Pocketed $77,000 Audit, Investigation Find No Trace of Village Financial Records Taxpayers in Otisville were cheated out of tens of thousands of dollars by their former village treasurer, who covered up the theft with inaccurate--and in...
Continue reading "OTISVILLE OVERLOOKED OBVIOUS" »
CUOMO ANNOUNCES FELONY GUILTY PLEA BY FORMER COMPTROLLER ALAN HEVESI IN PAY-TO-PLAY PENSION FUND KICKBACK SCHEME Hevesi Admits Accepting Nearly $1 Million in Benefits in Exchange for Approving $250 Million in Pension Fund Investments ~Benefits Consisted of $75,000 in Travel...
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New Jersey Supreme Court Allows Mass-Marketing Fraud Class Action, Decision Adopts Public Citizen's AnalysisLast week, the New Jersey Supreme Court handed down a unanimous opinion allowing a mass-marketing consumer fraud case to go forward as a class action. The court's...
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Health Department Employee Stole Thousands From State A New York State Department of Health (DOH) employee was charged yesterday with felony grand larceny after an investigation by State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli's office revealed she used state-issued credit cards to...
Continue reading "STATE FUNDED SHOPPING SPREES & GAMBLING JUNKETS?" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO SUES SCHOOL BUS COMPANIES THAT LEFT NYC PUBLIC SCHOOL STUDENTS WITHOUT TRANSPORTATION Companies operated by Thomas Guida charged families thousands of dollars to transport public school students throughout NYC, then abruptly shut down with little notice...
Continue reading "BUS COMPANIES LEFT KIDS STRANDED" »
Medicaid Over-Billed for So-Called Dental Consultations Forty percent of Medicaid payments made to dental specialists who were supposed to provide consultant services were improper and many may be fraudulent, according to an audit released by State Comptroller Thomas P....
Continue reading "WERE DENTISTS ENGAGED IN FRAUD?" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES ARRESTS OF CONTRACTORS WHO CHEATED WORKERS ON TAXPAYER-FUNDED PROJECTS Officials at G-1 Ironworks, FJM-Ferro, ANR Electrical Contracting, and Grand Electric Allegedly Stole Over $450,000 in State and NYC Funds Slated for Workers On Friday, Attorney...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES FELONY CHARGES AGAINST OWNER OF DEBT COLLECTION COMPANY THAT TARGETED MILITARY PERSONNEL Cuomo also files civil suit to shut down company Actions part of industry-wide investigation into abusive debt collection companies Yesterday, Attorney General Andrew M....
Continue reading "DEBT COLLECTOR VICTIMIZED MILITARY FAMILIES" »
CUOMO SECURES AN ADDITIONAL $8.5 MILLION IN SETTLEMENTS WITH COMPANIES THAT TRICKED CONSUMERS INTO SIGNING UP FOR DISCOUNT CLUBS WITH HIDDEN FEES Webloyalty Will Provide Full Refunds to Consumers Who Were Duped While Shopping Online Ticketmaster, Pizza Hut, Orbitz,...
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SCHUMER CALLS ON NATIONAL GRID CEO TO DIRECT AMERICAN SUBSIDIARY TO IMMEDIATELY WITHDRAW RATE HIKE REQUEST UNTIL INVESTIGATION INTO OUTRAGEOUS SPENDING IS COMPLETE On Sunday, Nat Grid International Boss Apologized For Mistakes And Criticized American Subsidiary for Using Ratepayers' Money...
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$88,000 Pension PaddingScheme Uncovered in Oneida County DiNapoli's Investigation Identified Nine Years of Abuse by Retired Rome City Police Officer Former Director of Security for the Rome City School District and retired Rome city police officer Thomas C. Hubal...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES ARRESTS OF HUSBAND AND WIFE FOR OPERATING QUEENS PHARMACY WITHOUT A LICENSED PHARMACIST Pharmacy Also Defrauded Medicaid by Billing for Medications Never Dispensed Late last week, Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo announced the arrests of...
Continue reading "DOESN'T THAT MAKE THEM DRUG DEALERS?" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES AGREEMENT WITH HEVESI FUNDRAISER IN ONGOING INVESTIGATION INTO STATE PENSION FUND William "Bill" White Will Pay $1 Million to New York State and Comply with the Attorney General's Public Pension Fund Reform Code of Conduct Cuomo's...
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Potential Fraud in Kinderhook and Greenport Could Have Been Prevented by Proper Fiscal Oversight Yesterday, New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli announced that proper oversight could have detected the misappropriation of funds by the bookkeeper in the Towns of...
Continue reading "DID SHE COOK THE BOOKS?" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES THE ARRESTS OF EIGHT SUSPECTS IN NO-FAULT INSURANCE FRAUD SCHEME Medical providers allegedly submitted tens of thousands of dollars in fraudulent billing for services never provided to patients ~Two doctors, two chiropractors, three acupuncturists, and clinic...
Continue reading "CUOMO CLOSES CORRUPT CLINIC" »
During the course of his criminal trial, Carnell Drayton asked the New York County Supreme Court to suppress the identification testimony, claiming that his lineup was unduly suggestive because he was the only person wearing a white shirt. (Since the...
Continue reading "CARNELL KNOWLEDGE?" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES LANDMARK AGREEMENT WITH SUNY TO PROTECT STUDENTS FROM DECEPTIVE AND UNFAIR CREDIT CARD MARKETING SUNY Leads Nation by Adopting Cuomo's Comprehensive "Student Credit Card Reforms" to Stop Marketing Practices that Push Students into Debt Cuomo Calls...
Continue reading "ANDREW DOESN'T WANT KIDS TO GET INTO DEBT" »
Town of Wheatfield Has a Bigger Deficit Than Reported Town Inappropriately Used Grant Funds for General Town Purposes The Town of Wheatfield mismanaged its finances and accumulated a large deficit, according to a report released last week by New York State Comptroller...
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SCHUMER REVEALS: PHONY CHINESE ORGANICS THREATEN TO UNDERMINE GROWING ORGANIC FOOD INDUSTRY IN ST LAWRENCE COUNTY - DEMANDS USDA STEP UP ENFORCEMENT OF IMPORTED GOODS Reports of Falsely Labeled Products Demonstrate Threat to American Farmers and Consumers if USDA Does...
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State Prison System Food Operations a Hot Bed For Corruption Meals and Gifts Traded for Millions in State Purchases Audio AvailableThe former director of the State Department of Corrections' (DOCS) prison food production operation and his staff routinely traded favors...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO LAUNCHES WIDE-RANGING INVESTIGATION INTO PATRONAGE, CRONYISM AND WASTE OF TAXPAYER MONEY AT THE NEW YORK STATE FAIR Attorney General Obtains Referral from the Governor for Investigation to Protect Integrity of the State Fair Subpoenas Issued to...
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Town of Turin Board Members Filed False Documentation with the Unified Court System Comptroller DiNapoli Identifies $37,000 Cash Shortage Two board members in the Town of Turin filed documentation with the Unified Court System falsely certifying that they had conducted...
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NEWS FROM INDEPENDENT COUNSEL JUDITH S. KAYE Judge Judith S. Kaye, Independent Counsel to the Office of the Attorney General, today released her final report entitled, "Report of Investigation into events arising from Governor David A. Paterson's acquisition of 2009...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO BRINGS CHARGES AGAINST WNY MAN WHO ALLEGEDLY RAN DEBT COLLECTION BUSINESS FROM PRISON Lamont Cooper's employees posed as law enforcement, threatened to throw consumers in jail if they didn't pay debts ~Latest action in Cuomo's ongoing investigation...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES GUILTY PLEA OF HUDSON VALLEY BUILDER WHO RIPPED OFF PROSPECTIVE HOMEOWNERS Christopher Marnell stole more than $350,000 from families, never built houses New York State Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo today announced the guilty plea from...
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State Potentially Paid $883,000 Inappropriately to Defunct After-School Program Defunct not-for-profit Educators for Children, Youth and Families Inc. (Educators for Children), which offered after-school services to children in New York City, may have received $883,530 in state funding it shouldn't...
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State OCFS Paid for Care of Deceased Children The State Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS) made $214,593 in inappropriate payments to adoptive parents of hard-to-place and handicapped children, according to an audit being released today by State Comptroller...
Continue reading "WE'VE BEEN PAYING TO SUPPORT DEAD KIDS?" »
Medicaid Overpaid for Dental Care by $40 MillionNew York's Medicaid program paid more than $40 million for excessive dental cleanings and oral examinations over a five-year period, according to an audit released today by New York State Comptroller Thomas P....
Continue reading "DINAPOLI WANTS TO "ROOT OUT THE ROT"" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO SHUTS DOWN SEVEN COMPANIES FOR PROVIDING FRAUDULENT LEGAL SERVICES TO IMMIGRANT COMMUNITIES Files Two Additional Lawsuits against Companies for Defrauding Thousands of Immigrants Latest Stages of Cuomo's Ongoing Immigration Fraud Investigation Yesterday, Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo...
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Gillibrand, Weiner: Pass New Law To Protect Queens Seniors From Financial Fraud Estimates Show More Than 60,000 Queens Seniors Fall Victim to Horrible Financial Scams Each Year, Costing More Than $20 Million Annually Last week, U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY),...
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Governor Paterson Announces Results of New Facial Recognition Technology by DMV Last week, Governor David A. Paterson announced the initial results of the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) use of facial recognition technology to identify fraud cases. Use of...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO REACHES AGREEMENT WITH SECURITY COMPANY THAT TRICKED HOMEOWNERS INTO SIGNING CONTRACTS Pinnacle Security Group Must Pay Restitution and Penalties and Reform Company Practices Yesterday, Attorney General Andrew Cuomo announced a settlement with Pinnacle Security Group, LLC ("Pinnacle"),...
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Audit Finds Former Sodus Town Clerk Embezzled Approximately $50,000 Over Eight Years An audit released today by New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli found that the former Sodus town clerk embezzled approximately $50,000 during the past eight years. The...
Continue reading "SODUS DIDN'T HAVE OUR BACK" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES EXPANSION OF INDUSTRY-WIDE INVESTIGATION INTO PREDATORY HEALTH CARE LENDING THAT IS PUSHING CONSUMERS NATIONWIDE INTO DEBT Health care credit card scheme preys on seniors and vulnerable patients ~Cuomo subpoenas health care clinics and credit card companies...
Continue reading "NEITHER HEALTHY NOR CARING CREDIT" »
DiNapoli: Learning Center Collected Funds For Services Not Rendered An audit released by State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli found that the Rainbow Rhymes Learning Center (Rainbow) of the Bronx spent nearly a half million dollars in reported expenses that...
Continue reading "POT OF GOLD AT THE END OF THIS RAINBOW" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO FILES ANTITRUST LAWSUIT AGAINST PRICE FIXING CARTEL OF LCD PANEL MANUFACTURERS Lawsuit seeks to recover damages suffered by New York State governmental and other public entities from illegal price fixing conspiracy On Friday, Attorney General Andrew M....
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO LAUNCHES INDUSTRY-WIDE INVESTIGATION INTO PREDATORY HEALTH CARE LENDING THAT IS PUSHING CONSUMERS NATIONWIDE INTO DEBT Health care credit card scheme preys on seniors and vulnerable patients ~Cuomo subpoenas health care practices and credit card companies Yesterday, Attorney...
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DiNapoli: State Dental Insurer Overcharged by $1.6 Million Group Health Incorporated (GHI), the administrator for New York State's dental benefits plan, paid about $1.6 million in questionable claims by dentists for scaling and root planing procedures, according to an audit...
Continue reading "DENTISTS TOOK US TO THE CLEANERS" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO LAUNCHES INVESTIGATION OF LIFE INSURANCE INDUSTRY FOR DEFRAUDING MILITARY FAMILIES AND OTHERS OF MILLIONS IN CASH PAYOUTS Subpoenas Served on Prudential Financial, Inc. and MetLife, Inc.; Entire Industry Under Investigation ~Insurers Appear to Have Reaped Hundreds...
Continue reading "THEY STOLE FROM MILITARY FAMILIES?" »
Here's the latest episode of Steve De Castro's Lawyers Roundtable Series. Assemblymember Micah Kellner proposes an "Honest Services" statute, to counter corruption in Albany. Guest-starring Councilmember James Sanders. Starring Bob Silversmith, Adam Leitman Bailey, Lucas Ferrara, Seth Miller, Carol Anne...
Continue reading "LAWYERS ROUNDTABLE: KEEPING POLITICIANS HONEST" »
Michael Picozzi III wanted to buy property from Michael Marcantonio. Although the parties' contract of sale reflected that a downpayment had been received, that apparently wasn't the case and the funds were deposited at "a later date." After the house...
Continue reading "WRONG CLAIM, WRONG TIME" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO SETTLES WITH BUFFALO DEBT COLLECTION COMPANY THAT HARASSED AND INTIMIDATED CONSUMERS LHR violated state and federal debt collection laws; must reform practices, pay $125k in penalties/costs Yesterday, Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo announced a settlement with a...
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CUOMO ANNOUNCES ARRESTS OF ROCKLAND COUNTY MOTHER AND HOME HEALTH CARE NURSE FOR CONSPIRING TO BILL MEDICAID FOR SERVICES NEVER PROVIDED TO SICK CHILD Investigation Used Undercover Video Surveillance as Part of AG's 'Operation Home Alone' Yesterday, Attorney General Andrew...
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DiNapoli: Former Director Used Nearly $100,000 inComLinks Money For Her Own Personal Use Board Failed to Act on Early Complaints About Abuse; DiNapoli Referring Report to District Attorney Former ComLinks Chief Executive Officer Nancy Reich diverted nearly $100,000 in grant...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES $20 MILLION SETTLEMENT WITH FOOD SERVICES COMPANY FOR OVERCHARGING NEW YORK SCHOOLS Settlement part of ongoing, industry-wide investigation Yesterday, Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo announced a $20 million settlement with food services provider Sodexo for...
Continue reading "THEY TOOK KIDS' LUNCH MONEY" »
New Jersey Woman Sentenced for Committing Insurance Fraud and Selling Prescription Fertility Drugs via the Internet Food and Drug Administration Office of Criminal Investigations BOSTON, Mass. - A Hackensack, New Jersey woman was sentenced today in federal...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES CONVICTION OF WNY HOSPITAL CONTRACTOR WHO BRIBED COUNTY WORKER IN MEDICAID SCAM Hospital debt collecting company and its owner bilked Medicaid out of more than $725,000 Cuomo Medicaid Fraud Control Unit's court-ordered recoveries top $800 Million...
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Free Immigration Fraud Workshop Sunday, July 18, 11am-3pm Join me and Make the Road New York at a free workshop for victims of fraud by an immigrant service provider. This is a free workshop led by a lawyer where you...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES MOTHER AND DAUGHTER SENTENCED TO JAIL FOR STEALING MORE THAN $105,000 FROM MEDICAID Family billed Medicaid while vacationing in Paris, Puerto Rico, and Miami Beach Yesterday, Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo announced the sentencing...
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When Joseph Rosenzweig sought to foreclose on a mortgage he had given to Radiah Givens -- his then paramour, who later became his wife -- Givens countered that Rosenzweig had secured the mortgage by way of fraud, overreaching, and, by...
Continue reading "LOVE AND MARRIAGE" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES CRIMINAL CONVICTIONS IN MULTI-MILLION DOLLAR MEDICAID FRAUD SCHEME Two Medicaid Providers Operated by Disqualified Individual Required to Pay Back $44 Million in Stolen Taxpayer Funds Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo announced yesterday that two Brooklyn-based Medicaid...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES PRELIMINARY PENSION PADDING REPORT SHOWING THE PROBLEM IS WIDESPREAD AND IS COSTING TAXPAYERS MILLIONS Additional 23 Letters Sent to Public Employers in Expanding Investigation Cuomo Launches Website that Outlines Problem to New Yorkers Yesterday, Attorney General Andrew...
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Livingston Mandel Deans, his father (Byron), and his second wife (Sharon), each shared a one-third interest in a Queens property. After his death in 2001, Livingston's property went to his wife Sharon and to his two surviving children. But in 2003,...
Continue reading "REAL SPEC GOT FAKE MORTGAGE" »
Pharmacy Owner Sentenced to Over 4 Years for Health Care Fraud, Aggravated Identity Theft and Conspiracy to Misbrand Drugs Food and Drug Administration Office of Criminal Investigations U.S. Department of Justice Press...
Continue reading "WAS THIS PHARMACIST ON DRUGS?" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES ARREST AND GUILTY PLEA OF THE FOUNDER OF A SHAM CAR DONATION CHARITY Queens-based "Hope for the Disabled Kids, Inc." Spent Over $2 Million on Personal Expenses and Real Estate Instead of Helping Families Latest Action...
Continue reading "IS THERE NO HOPE FOR THIS GUY?" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO, NYPD COMMISSIONER KELLY, AND NYSP AUTO THEFT UNIT DISMANTLE INTERNATIONAL VEHICLE THEFT AND EXPORT RING Early Morning Raids Results in Arrests as Part of "Operation Trans Atlantic" ~Hundreds of Vehicles were Stolen for Sale Across the...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES FORMER STATE EMPLOYEE ADMITS TO USING TAXPAYER MONEY TO FINANCE HIS EBAY BUSINESS On Monday, Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo announced the guilty plea of a former state worker who used the Department of Health's postage meter to...
Continue reading "HE STOLE OVER $16,000 IN POSTAGE FROM DOH" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO EXPANDS INVESTIGATION INTO MORTGAGE RESCUE COMPANIES THAT ABUSE HOMEOWNERS Cuomo Orders Over 30 Additional Mortgage Rescue Companies to Cease Fraudulent Practices; 213 Companies Have Now Been Put on Notice Cuomo's Website www.nyprotectyourhome.com Helps Homeowners Avoid Mortgage...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ORDERS MORTGAGE RESCUE COMPANIES TO CEASE FRAUDULENT PRACTICES AGAINST HOMEOWNERS Cuomo Sends Cease-and-Desist Letters to Over 180 Mortgage Rescue Companies Cuomo's Website www.nyprotectyourhome.com Helps Homeowners Avoid Mortgage Rescue Scams Yesterday, Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo announced...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO SECURES MORE THAN $100K FOR VICTIMS OF GENEVA CAR DEALERSHIP THAT ENGAGED IN FRAUD Daniels Automotive employees regularly altered sales documents and engaged in other deceptive acts Yesterday, Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo announced his office...
Continue reading "CUOMO GETS $100,000 FROM DANIELS AUTOMOTIVE GROUP" »
Statement by Secretary Kathleen Sebelius Regarding the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) I am very disturbed by the findings in an upcoming GAO report on the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) that found instances in which...
Continue reading "A LIHEAP BACKWARD?" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES ARREST OF ULSTER COUNTY EMPLOYEE FOR STEALING AUTO PARTS AND FALSIFYING OFFICIAL RECORDS Late last week, Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo announced the arrest of an Ulster County employee for stealing auto parts meant for...
Continue reading "GRAND THEFT AUTO (PARTS)" »
This piece appeared in the Real Estate Section of Sunday's New York Times. Promises, Promises Should Be in Writing BY: JAY ROMANO Q I recently used Craigslist to find an apartment. The person showing the place said the building had a...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES INDUSTRY-WIDE INVESTIGATION INTO CAR DONATION CHARITIES Cuomo Audit Reveals Variety of Misleading Practices; Subpoenas Issued to 16 Charities, Fundraisers, and Individuals Involved in the Car Donation Industry Attorney General Cuomo Sues to Shut Down Charity...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES INDICTMENT OF BRONX RECYCLER FOR FALSIFYING DOCUMENTS TO HIDE ILLEGAL DUMPING Yesterday, Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo announced an indictment of Salvatore Cascino and Bronx County Recycling, LLC for filing false documents with the State...
Continue reading "WILL THIS RECYCLER GET WASTED?" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES MULTI-MILLION DOLLAR SETTLEMENT WITH NYC DERMATOLOGIST FOR DEFRAUDING MEDICAID Yesterday, Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo and Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced a $2.75 million settlement with...
Continue reading "A THICK-SKINNED DERMATOLOGIST?" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO SUES NYC DEVELOPER FOR ILLEGALLY RAIDING CONDOMINIUM'S RESERVE FUND Lawsuit Seeks $7.4 Million in Restitution and to Bar Developer from Future Sales Yesterday, Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo filed a lawsuit charging the developers of the...
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FTC Warns of Oil Spill Scams It's no secret that scam artists follow the headlines, and the daily news of the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is no exception. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation's consumer...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO SUES IMMIGRATION SERVICES COMPANIES FOR TARGETING AND DEFRAUDING HAITIANS IMPACTED BY RECENT EARTHQUAKE Victims Paid Large Sums for Legal Services that the Companies Were Not Authorized to Perform and Often Did Not Provide Lawsuits Seek to...
Continue reading "THEY DEFRAUDED HAITIAN IMMIGRANTS" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO SETTLES WITH TRUGREEN LAWN CARE OVER DECEPTIVE SALES AND CONTRACT PRACTICES TruGreen billed customers for unauthorized services and then failed to honor consumers' requests for cancellation in timely manner TruGreen reimburses consumers, pays penalties, fees and...
Continue reading "TRUGREEN WASN'T TRUE BLUE" »
Our partner, Jonathan H. Newman, was quoted in yesterday's New York Times responding to a reader's question. Here's the piece, that ran on Sunday, June 6, 2010, in its entirety: A Question of 'Double-Dipping' By JAY ROMANO Q. A...
Continue reading "IN THE TIMES: NEWMAN ON "DOUBLE-DIPPING"" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES ARRESTS IN MULTI-MILLION DOLLAR MEDICAID FRAUD SCHEME RUN OUT OF THREE NEW YORK CITY DENTAL CLINICS Defendants Allegedly Stole $5.7 Million From Medicaid Fund Yesterday, Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo announced the arrest and indictment...
Continue reading "IS THIS HOW DENTAL CLINICS WORK?" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO SUES WNY DEBT COLLECTION COMPANIES THAT HARASSED AND THREATENED CONSUMERS NATIONWIDE Yesterday, Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo announced a lawsuit against several Western New York debt collection companies that violated the law by harassing consumers through repeated...
Continue reading "WHEN DEBT COLLECTION GETS OBSCENE" »
DOT Fines Two Airlines for Violating Price Advertising Rules Last week, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) today assessed civil penalties against AirTran Airways and Delta Air Lines for violating rules that require airline price advertisements to disclose the full...
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CHAUTAUQUA RESTAURATEUR ADMITS STEALING $430,000 IN NEW YORK STATE SALES TAX Local businessman kept sales tax collected from patrons of three local restaurants Earlier this week, Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo announced the guilty plea of a Bemus Point...
Continue reading "HE STOLE $430K IN SALES TAX RECEIPTS" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES SENTENCING OF FORMER NOT-FOR-PROFIT CEO FOR STEALING HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS Second Official Sentenced in Scheme to Funnel Money from Organization for Personal Use Yesterday, Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo announced the sentencing of...
Continue reading "HE TOOK MONEY FROM KIDS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO SUES NATIONWIDE NETWORK THAT SCAMMED MEMBERS OF THE MILITARY SmartBuy network sold items at grossly inflated prices with average effective interest rate of 244 percent ~Cuomo notifies Defense Secretary Gates, Secretary of Army McHugh of allegations...
Continue reading "THESE GUYS SCAMMED OUR SOLDIERS?" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES ARREST OF TWO PORT CHESTER CONTRACTORS FOR STEALING MORE THAN $2 MILLION IN WAGES ON LOCAL GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS Officials at Leed Industries Corp. also charged with falsifying records to cover up crime NEW YORK,...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES ARREST OF QUEENS CONTRACTOR FOR STEALING MILLIONS IN WAGES FROM SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo today announced the arrest of Queens contractor Kostas "Gus" Andrikopoulos, of Hara Electric Corporation, who allegedly failed...
Continue reading "QUEENS CONTRACTOR ARRESTED FOR BILKING MILLIONS" »
DiNapoli: $81 Million in Improper Payments Uncovered A typing error nearly cost taxpayers $5.5 million for a bill that was only $92, State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli said today. Before the bill was paid, auditors in DiNapoli's office caught...
Continue reading "HE STOPPED MILLIONS IN QUESTIONABLE PAYMENTS" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO SUES BANK OF NEW YORK MELLON UNIT FOR DECEIVING CLIENTS IN CONNECTION WITH MADOFF-RELATED INVESTMENTS Internal E-Mails Reveal Ivy Asset Management and Its Co-Principals Deliberately Misled Clients ~Ivy's Years of Fraud Cost Hundreds of Investors Over...
Continue reading "NOT SO ROSEY FOR IVY" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO OBTAINS $2.2 MILLION JUDGMENT AGAINST ROCHESTER PAYROLL COMPANY FOR SCAMMING HUNDREDS OF AREA BUSINESSES Paybooks Owner Used Client Payments Intended for Taxes for Personal Expenses Yesterday, Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo announced that his office has obtained...
Continue reading "PAYROLL COMPANY STOLE MILLIONS" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO CHARGES FORMER STATE EMPLOYEE WITH USING TAXPAYER MONEY TO HELP FINANCE EBAY BUSINESS Yesterday, Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo announced the arrest of a former state worker for using the Department of Health's postage meter to...
Continue reading "CUOMO STAMPS OUT MAIL CLERK" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO SUES PEDRO ESPADA, JR. AND PEDRO G. ESPADA FOR FRAUDULENT AND ABUSIVE LABOR PRACTICES Espadas Created a Sham Job Training Program to Cheat Workers, Maximize Profits, and Shortchange Taxpayers Yesterday, Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo filed a...
Continue reading "DID THE ESPADAS VIOLATE LABOR LAWS?" »
DiNapoli Warns of Mystery Shopper Scam Using Fake State Checks Yesterday, New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli warned of a mystery shopper scam involving fraudulent checks that appear to have been issued by New York State. "In these...
Continue reading "DON'T BE A MYSTERY SHOPPER" »
CUOMO ANNOUNCES ASTRAZENECA TO PAY N.Y. NEARLY $45 MILLION TO SETTLE CLAIMS OF OFF-LABEL DRUG MARKETING AND KICKBACKS AstraZeneca promoted drugs for purposes other than what was approved by the FDA, made illegal kickbacks to physicians New York's portion...
Continue reading "WHY DO I FEEL CONFLICTED?" »
ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES OVER $100,000 IN RESTITUTION GOING TO CONSUMERS VICTIMIZED BY 3 CAR DEALERSHIPS New Rochelle's JM Hyundai and Lynbrook's Legacy Infiniti sold former rental cars without informing customers of prior use Centereach's Middle Country Motors failed...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ISSUES SUBPOENA TO STATE SENATE FOR EMPLOYEE RECORDS IN ONGOING ESPADA INVESTIGATION Records, Including Hiring Documents and Time Sheets, Sought on Senate Employees Who Were Also Affiliated with Senate Majority Leader Pedro Espada's Comprehensive Community Development...
Continue reading "CUOMO PURSUES ESPADA'S COHORTS" »
BUCKLEY WOMAN SENTENCED TO JAIL TIME, HOME DETENTION FOR FALSE CLAIM OF GLASS IN BOTTLED WATER BETTER BUSINESS BUREAU EMPLOYEE USED YOUNG DAUGHTER TO MAKE FALSE CLAIM FOR DAMAGE KELSY MACOM, 36, of Buckley, Washington, was sentenced yesterday to...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO CHARGES PEDRO ESPADA JR. AND 19 EXECUTIVES WITH LOOTING HIS BRONX NOT-FOR-PROFIT Espada and His Family Siphoned More Than $14 Million Over 5 Years Espada Packed Board with Family Members and Senate Employees to Rubber Stamp...
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CUOMO ANNOUNCES SENTENCING OF WNY TRAVEL OPERATOR WHO SOLD PHONY TRAVEL VOUCHERS Owner sentenced to one year in jail, paid $130,000 in restitution Destination Management Group of Buffalo sold trips to organizations to use as fund-raising, marketing or incentive...
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The New York State Comptroller issued this statement last week: State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli Statement on Pension Fund Investigation "I am outraged by the criminal acts that occurred during the Hevesi Administration. Anyone who has violated the law and...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO'S FIGHT AGAINST CORRUPTION IN THE STATE PENSION FUND NETS FOUR MORE COMPANIES AND ONE INDIVIDUAL Quadrangle, Global Strategy Group, Kevin McCabe, GKM, and Platinum Advisors Will Pay Nearly $12 Million to New York State and Comply...
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DiNapoli: $12 Million In Questionable Tax Refunds Stopped The State Comptroller's Office has so far stopped $12 million in questionable personal tax refunds from being paid in 2010, New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli said today. His office...
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CUOMO TO TAKE LEGAL ACTION AGAINST SMARTBUY AND ITS AFFILIATED COMPANIES FOR PREYING ON MEMBERS OF THE MILITARY WITH FRAUDULENT AND DECEPTIVE PRACTICES Cuomo's investigation determines that SmartBuy engaged in deceptive lending practices and usury targeting soldiers and their...
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ANNOUNCES FAVORABLE DECISION IN LAWSUIT AGAINST NEW YORK-BASED "AMERIMOD" LOAN MODIFICATION COMPANY Court Rules That Company Fraudulently Charged Homeowners Illegal Fees for Loan Modifications It Never Delivered Thousands of Homeowners Victimized Nationwide NEW YORK, NY (April 13, 2010) -...
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DOCS Boss Cheated State Out of $500,000 Took Fridays Off For 17 Years at Taxpayer Expense For 17 years, the former director of the state Department of Correctional Services' Food Processing Center in Rome engaged in fraudulent activities that...
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After buying two buildings from Mocal Enterprises, Inc., for $92 million dollars, 1225 Realty Owner LLC sued the seller on "fraudulent concealment" grounds -- claiming Mocal failed to disclose the existence of certain lease extensions. When the New York...
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CUOMO SHUTS DOWN WNY PROCESS SERVER COMPANY FOR LYING ON AFFIDAVITS OF SERVICE "We Serve it For You" servers claimed to be in two or more places at same time, claimed to serve documents before receiving them ~Company and...
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MEDICAL DEVICE MANUFACTURER GUIDANT PLEADS GUILTY FOR NOT REPORTING DEFIBRILLATOR SAFTEY PROBLEMS TO FDA WASHINGTON - Guidant LLC pleaded guilty today in St. Paul, Minn., before U.S. District Court Judge Donovan W. Frank to criminal violations of the Federal...
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Federal Government Seizes Dozens of Misbranded Drug Products FDA warned company about making medical claims for bee-derived products At the request of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, U.S. Marshals on March 31 seized a range of consumer products, including...
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To help the public recognize and avoid tax schemes and scams the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) offers an abundance of educational materials. For a list of common schemes and scams, please visit: 2010 Dirty Dozen Tax Scams Five Facts...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO'S "PENSION PADDING" INVESTIGATION EXPANDS WITH LETTERS TO 25 LOCALITIES ACROSS NYS Investigation Aimed at Artificial Inflation of Compensation to Boost Pension Payout Yesterday, Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo announced that his investigation into the manipulation of...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO BARS CONDOMINIUM DEVELOPER FROM FUTURE SALES Developer hid that one of its principals was the escrow agent, and controlled the company that certified the project's budget Under settlement all purchasers are offered the right to rescind...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO EXPANDS INVESTIGATION INTO "PENSION PADDING" Cuomo Sends Letters to Local Government Employers and Authorities That Have Some of the Highest Salary or Pension Payments in the State Investigation Aimed at Artificial Inflation of Compensation to Boost...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO TAKES LEGAL ACTION AGAINST BROOKLYN TOUR BUS COMPANY FOR CHARGING FOR TRIPS THAT NEVER TOOK PLACE Crosby Tours failed to provide trips to more than 130 consumers who paid in advance Company owners were previously employed...
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THREE INDICTED FOR DIVERSION OF PRESCRIPTION DRUGS Last week, Jeffrey H. Sloman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and David W. Bourne, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Office of Criminal Investigations, Miami...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO OBTAINS AGREEMENT WITH LONG ISLAND RAIL ROAD FOR AN INDEPENDENT EXAMINER AND OTHER REFORMS TO END DISABILITY BENEFITS ABUSES Yesterday, Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo announced that the Long Island Rail Road ("LIRR") has agreed to appoint...
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SPRINGFIELD BUSINESS OWNER PLEADS GUILTY TO $17 MILLION FRAUD SCHEME SOLD DIETARY SUPPLEMENTS OVER THE INTERNET WITH FALSE CLAIMS TO PREVENT, CURE DISEASES SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - Beth Phillips, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES ARREST OF QUEENSBURY INSURANCE AGENT FOR GRAND LARCENY Yesterday, Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo announced the arrest of a Queensbury insurance agent who defrauded a Fort Ann couple by stealing money they had given to him...
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NYS COMPTROLLER'S FORMER CHIEF INVESTMENT OFFICER PLEADS GUILTY IN ONGOING PENSION INVESTIGATION David Loglisci Describes "Culture of Corruption" within NYS Common Retirement Fund NEW YORK, NY -- Yesterday, Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo announced that David Loglisci, the former Chief Investment Officer...
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CUOMO SUES CNY WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER FOR FAILING TO PROVIDE PHOTOS TO AREA COUPLES Bud Thorpe's Limelight Studios demanded up-front payments and then failed to deliver proofs, prints, albums, DVDs ~Cuomo's lawsuit seeks to bar Thorpe from business until he...
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CUOMO'S OFFICE REACHES AGREEMENT WITH FEDERAL AND STATE TAX AUTHORITIES TO HELP BUSINESSES SCAMMED BY DEFUNCT ROCHESTER PAYROLL COMPANY Paybooks' owner allegedly failed to pay more than $2 million of customers' taxes ROCHESTER, N.Y. -- Yesterday, Attorney General Andrew...
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BOCA RATON MAN SENTENCED FOR NUTRITIONAL SUPPLEMENT SCAM Jeffrey H. Sloman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, David W. Bourne, Special Agent in Charge, Food and Drug Administration, Office of Criminal Investigations, Daniel W. Auer, Special...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO OBTAINS $3 MILLION COURT JUDGMENT AGAINST QUEENS WOMAN IN IMMIGRATION SCAM Miriam Mercedes Hernandez of Queens falsely promised to help immigrants secure permanent residency and citizenship ~Latest action in Cuomo's ongoing investigation into immigration fraud NEW...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ARRESTS OWNER OF POPULAR NEW YORK CITY CLOTHING STORES FOR CHEATING WORKERS OUT OF $1.5 MILLION Owner of Downtown Stores Charged with Failing to Pay Employees and Falsifying Business Records ~Owner Also Attempted to Impede the...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES $1.5 MILLION SETTLEMENT WITH FREELOTTO.COM FOR DECEPTIVE ADVERTISING Refunds Will Be Available to Consumers over the Next Six Months NEW YORK, NY -- Yesterday, Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo announced a settlement with New York...
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CUOMO ANNOUNCES CHARGES AGAINST FORMER UB RESEARCHER FOR HIRING ACTORS TO TESTIFY DURING MISCONDUCT HEARING AND ATTEMPTING TO SIPHON $4 MILLION IN TAXPAYER FUNDS Cuomo's office uncovers elaborate series of fraudulent actions after researcher sued New York state seeking...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO SECURES $275K IN RESTITUTION FOR VICTIMS OF A NEW YORK DEBT COLLECTION OPERATION THAT USED ILLEGAL SCARE TACTICS TO THREATEN CONSUMERS Company Principals Barred from Debt Collection Business ~Employees Posed as Law Enforcement Officials and Threatened...
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CUOMO SECURES AGREEMENTS WITH TWO MAJOR INVESTMENT FIRMS IN ONGOING NEW YORK STATE PENSION FUND INVESTIGATION Markstone Capital Adopts Cuomo's Public Pension Fund Reform Code of Conduct; Agrees to Return $18 Million to New York State Common Retirement Fund...
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CUOMO ANNOUNCES GUILTY PLEA OF WNY TRAVEL OPERATOR WHO SOLD PHONY TRAVEL VOUCHERS Destination Management Group of Buffalo sold trips to organizations to use as fund-raising, marketing or incentive tools, and then never booked the trips; Victims include Hospice...
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When Paul Arnold purchased a home from Gale Wilkins, the contract of sale provided that the sewage disposal system was in good working order. And an inspection, conducted prior to the closing, revealed no problems. Several months later, after...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO FILES FRAUD CHARGES AGAINST BANK OF AMERICA, FORMER CEO KENNETH LEWIS, AND FORMER CFO JOSEPH PRICE Suit Alleges Bank of America's Top Management Hid Skyrocketing Losses at Merrill Lynch Bank of America Management Manipulated Federal...
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GOVERNOR PATERSON ANNOUNCES AGENCY CUTS, FACILITY CLOSURES AND OTHER MEASURES TO STREAMLINE GOVERNMENT, SAVE TAXPAYER DOLLARS Important Step towards Changing and Restructuring the Way New York Does Business; Making State Government Smarter, Smaller, and Less Costly Efforts of Office...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO SUES TWO IMMIGRATION SERVICES ORGANIZATIONS FOR PROVIDING FRAUDULENT LEGAL SERVICES Lawsuit seeks restitution and an end to fraudulent practices Today's lawsuit is latest action in Cuomo's ongoing immigration fraud investigation [En Español] NEW YORK, NY (January...
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GOVERNOR PATERSON ANNOUNCES MERGERS, CONSOLIDATIONS, SHARED SERVICES TO STREAMLINE STATE GOVERNMENT, SAVE TAXPAYER DOLLARSImportant Step towards Changing and Restructuring the Way New York Does Business; Making State Government Smarter, Smaller, and Less CostlyEfforts of Office of Taxpayer Accountability Will...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES JAIL TIME FOR NYC PSYCHIATRIST WHO DEFRAUDED MEDICAID NEW YORK, N.Y. -- Yesterday, Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo announced the felony guilty pleas of Dr. Godfrey Mbonu, a psychiatrist, and his corporate medical group...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO OBTAINS COURT ORDER FREEZING ASSETS OF BROOKLYN PONZI AND PYRAMID SCHEME Gave False Promises of Fantastic Yields on Investments and a Guaranteed Return of Principal NEW YORK, N.Y. -- Late last week, Attorney General Andrew M....
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES $24 MILLION MEDICAID FRAUD SETTLEMENT WITH THREE HOME HEALTH AGENCIES Companies to Pay for Employing Untrained Home Health Aides Case Part of AG Cuomo's 'Operation Home Alone' NEW YORK, N.Y. (December 17, 2009) - Attorney General...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES INTERIM COURT ORDER SHUTTING DOWN ALL ACTIVITIES OF THE "UNITED HOMELESS ORGANIZATION" NEW YORK, NY - - Yesterday, Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo announced his office has obtained an interim court order shutting down the New York...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO SUES STUDY-AT-HOME COMPANY THAT PREYED ON UNEMPLOYED WITH PROMISES OF HIGH-PAYING GOVERNMENT JOBS State National Training Service held seminars throughout NYS wrought with false claims to entice individuals looking for jobs to pay $1,000 for worthless...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO REQUIRES CARL'S FURNITURE CITY TO MAKE GOOD ON DELINQUENT DELIVERIES, STOP DECEPTIVE PROMOTIONS Watertown and Utica retailer must pay $15,000 fine for failing to provide refunds for undelivered furniture and for engaging in deceptive marketing scheme...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES A SETTLEMENT WITH DELLA SUZUKI TO STOP DECEPTIVE ADVERTISING CAMPAIGN Plattsburgh dealership's ads misled consumers with offers of zero-percent financing and "guaranteed credit approval," with unreadable foot notes contradicting the offers PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. -- Attorney General...
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CUOMO ANNOUNCES GUILTY PLEA BY FOUNDER OF PRIVATE EQUITY FIRM IN CONTINUING INVESTIGATION OF PAY-TO-PLAY KICKBACK SCHEME AT STATE PENSION FUND Elliott Broidy Pleads Guilty to Felony Charge of Rewarding Official Misconduct Through Gifts of Nearly a Million Dollars...
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In 2003, John Whittier started up a hedge fund called Wood River Partners LP. As its sole principal and general partner, Whittier hired Seward & Kissel (S&K) as the fund's legal counsel and the latter prepared the initial offering...
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DiNapoli: Poor Oversight at Schenectady City SD Leads to $50K in Unverified Overtime for One Employee Risk Assessments Not Completed as Required by Law $26K in Questionable Payments to Employees Poor oversight by Schenectady City School District officials led...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO'S OFFICE SUES SMITHTOWN NISSAN FOR DECEIVING CUSTOMERS ABOUT SALE PRICES Dealership regularly inflated prices on contracts beyond what was agreed upon ~Cuomo urges Smithtown customers who believe they were defrauded to contact his office HAUPPAUGE, N.Y....
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FTC Warns Internet Peddlers that Marketing Unproven H1N1 Flu Products May Be Illegal The Federal Trade Commission last week sent 10 warning letters to Web site operators who made questionable claims that their products can prevent, treat, or cure...
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OPERATORS OF BURIEN SALON PLEAD GUILTY IN CASE INVOLVING BRIBE AND ILLEGAL IMPORT OF COSMETIC EQUIPMENT Burien Couple Tried to Bribe FDA Officer Over Radiation Emitting Device TOAN LE, 51, and HANG HO, 41, a married couple residing in...
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FTC Lodges Contempt Charge Against BlueHippo Company Pocketed More Than $15 Million From Consumers Last Year, But Almost None Received a Computer The Federal Trade Commission has asked a federal court to issue a contempt order against...
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ATTORNEY GENERAL CUOMO ANNOUNCES COURT DECISION REQUIRING BOGUS ANTIQUE ARTIFACT OPERATION TO PAY PENALTIES AND RESTITUTION Mircea Veleanu, owner of Objets D'Arts Uniques, lied about quality and value of artifacts; refused to give refunds after items were proven to be...
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LET'S KEEP FRAUD AND CORRUPTION OUT OF PUBLIC HOUSING In the last three months alone the City's Department of Investigation (DOI) announced the arrests of 11 Public Housing and Section 8 residents who were caught by a DOI investigation...
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FTC Charges 'Credit Card' Companies with Deceptive Marketing The Federal Trade Commission has filed a complaint in federal court alleging that a catalog credit card operation deceptively marketed its card, failed to honor its refund policy, and charged up-front...
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