Investment Fraud

There was some news from the FBI this week about Investment Fraud.

WASHINGTON—Attorney General Eric Holder announced today the results of Operation Broken Trust, a nationwide operation organized by the Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force to target investment fraud. To date, the operation has involved enforcement actions against 343 criminal defendants and 189 civil defendants for fraud schemes that harmed more than 120,000 victims throughout the country. The operation’s criminal cases involved more than $8.3 billion in estimated losses and the civil cases involved estimated losses of more than $2.1 billion. Operation Broken Trust is the first national operation of its kind to target a broad array of investment fraud schemes that directly prey upon the investing public.

In announcing the results of Operation Broken Trust, Attorney General Holder was joined by FBI Executive Assistant Director Shawn Henry, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Director of Enforcement Robert Khuzami, U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) Chief Postal Inspector Guy Cottrell, Deputy Chief Rick Raven of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), Acting Director of Enforcement Vince McGonagle of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), and other members of the Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force.

The interagency Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force was established by President Obama to lead an aggressive, coordinated, and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. Starting on Aug. 16, 2010, within a three-and-a-half month period, Operation Broken Trust involved 231 criminal cases and 60 civil enforcement actions. Eighty-seven defendants have been sentenced to prison, including several sentences of more than 20 years in prison.

“With this operation, the Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force is sending a strong message,” said Attorney General Holder.  To the public: be alert for these frauds, take appropriate measures to protect yourself, and report such schemes to proper authorities when they occur. And to anyone operating or attempting to operate an investment scam: cheating investors out of their earnings and savings is no longer a safe business plan—we will use every tool at our disposal to find you, to stop you, and to bring you to justice.”

“This operation highlights the scope of this problem, and its impact on individuals from all walks of life,” said FBI Executive Assistant Director Henry. “This one sweep alone involves fraud schemes that harmed more than 120,000 victims. The schemes may change, but the underlying greed does not. Working with our partners, we in the FBI will use all the investigative techniques in our arsenal, including undercover operations, to bring those responsible to justice.”

“Fraud by well-known companies or high-profile executives gets the biggest headlines, but other scams are equally devastating to hard working families and retirees,” said Robert Khuzami, Director of the SEC’s Division of Enforcement. “Victims want justice and don’t much care who the fraudster is or how unique the fraud.  Today’s actions underscore that law enforcement agrees and will pursue fraud in whatever form.”
Enforcement actions taken as a result of Operation Broken Trust involve a range of different investment fraud schemes, all of which prey directly on the investing public. The operators of these schemes often promise high returns to investors, but engage in little to no legitimate investment activity. Such schemes include Ponzi schemes, affinity fraud, prime bank/high-yield investment scams, foreign exchange (FOREX) frauds, business opportunity fraud, and other similar schemes. In some instances, operators of these schemes filed for bankruptcy in an attempt to avoid claims by victim-investors.

“The U.S. Postal Inspection Service has a long tradition of protecting postal customers from these types of investment and Ponzi scams and bringing those responsible to justice,” said USPIS Chief Postal Inspector Cottrell. “The Postal Inspection Service constantly strives to protect our customers and the general public from falling victim to these scams that claim millions of dollars every year.”

“The results announced today demonstrate the effectiveness of federal civil and criminal law enforcement in bringing to justice those who have engaged in financial fraud schemes,” said Acting Director McGonagle of the Division of Enforcement for CFTC. “The CFTC continues to devote substantial enforcement resources to combat financial fraud. We appreciate the partnership with the other members of the President’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force to protect the public from financial fraudsters.”

“Securities and investment frauds are serious offenses which have brought financial ruin to many citizens. Promoters of Ponzi schemes prey upon trusting investors and then steal their hard earned money,” said Rick Raven, Deputy Chief, IRS Criminal Investigation. “IRS Criminal Investigation is proud to bring our forensic accounting skills to this joint venture with our law enforcement partners to put a stop to this and other types of white collar fraud.”

Operation Broken Trust was conducted in conjunction with various Department of Justice components—including the U.S. Attorney Offices, the FBI, the Criminal and Civil Divisions and the U.S. Trustee Program—as well as the SEC, USPIS, the CFTC, IRS-CI, the Federal Trade Commission, the U.S. Secret Service, and the National Association of Attorneys General.

As a part of Operation Broken Trust, the task force is making the public aware of resources available to protect against these types of fraud and how to report fraud when it occurs. To learn more about investment scams, how to take steps to protect yourself from scams, or how to report investment fraud if you believe you have been victimized, go to StopFraud.gov. The website includes links to a wide array of task force member resources.

The President’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force includes representatives from a broad range of federal agencies, regulatory authorities, inspectors general, and state and local law enforcement who, working together, bring to bear a powerful array of criminal and civil enforcement resources. The task force is working to improve efforts across the federal executive branch, and with state and local partners, to investigate and prosecute significant financial crimes, ensure just and effective punishment for those who perpetrate financial crimes, combat discrimination in the lending and financial markets, and recover proceeds for victims of financial crimes. For more information on the task force, visit StopFraud.gov.

Fraud Fighters Forum

AARP and the BBB is holding a Fraud Fighters Forum on April 20th in Golden Valley, Minnesota.

You can read the details of the event here.

Attorney General Lori Swanson will be there, along with other top officials, to show you how to spot and stop fraud.

Hear about the crimes that affect Minnesotans and what members of the law enforcement are doing to combat criminal activity. Experts will cover the topics of:

Financial schemes
Investment fraud
Health care fraud
Identity theft

With the right information, you can avoid becoming a victim of fraud

Forex Fraud

I am the first to admit, I know nothing about trading and investments, so when  fellow fraud fighter came to me and wanted to talk to me about Forex Fraud I was clueless.  Forex Fraud is a type of investment fraud.  As with anything, you should do your homework first.  You can go to ForexFraud.com to find reviews of brokers, software, a beginners course in forex trading and tips of what to look for in forex scams.

We are happy to add ForexFraud.com and the information that they provide to our Scam Victims United family.

Scam fighting - 2010

As 2009 comes to a close and we enter into 2010 I wanted to share the New Year’s Resolution that we have at Scam Victims United . . . to bring scam education and awareness to people across the country.

One of the ways that we plan to do this is with events called Scam Jam. These events are the brainchild of Chuck Whitlock an investigative reporter, author and speaker. If you have ever been to a Home and Garden Show or Wedding Expo, imagine that same experience and setting focusing on scams and fraud. There are presentations, workshops and speakers on various topics such as

ID Theft
Internet Scams
Investment Fraud
Health Care Scams
Bank Fraud
Elder Fraud
Charity Scams
Mortgage Fraud
Phishing Scams
Credit Card and Check Schemes
Contractor Fraud
Food/Supplement Fraud
Mail Fraud

Presenters include local media personalities sharing their best investigative reporting stories that expose scams, law enforcement groups, lawyers and legal experts, and even former scam victims sharing their story of victimization to recovery. Beyond the workshops and presentations, people attending a Scam Jam can interact with Consumer Protection groups in the Exhibitors Room. These professionals can assist them with their scam and fraud related questions, and offer then resources to assist them recovery efforts. You may even be able to purchase one of Chuck Whitlock’s investigative books that exposes scams or books written by other presenters.

Scam Jam is a one stop shop for education and resources on scams, fraud and consumer protection.

We are currently scheduling dates for Scam Jam events for 2010. If your school, business or company would like to host a Scam Jam at your facility, or if you are a professional in the area of scam fighting and consumer protection that would like to be a part of a Scam Jam in your area, please contact us.


Shawn Mosch
Co-Founder of ScamVictimsUnited.com
There is strength in numbers!

Find us on Twitter, Facebook and more through
http://www.retaggr.com/page/ShawnMosch

Support Scam Victims United by shopping at
http://shopittous.blogspot.com/

One week to Scam Jam

It is only one week until Scam Jam in Portland, Oregon.


Please join us at Reed College on Saturday, October 17th from 9am to 3pm.

Learn how to protect yourself from ID theft, investment fraud, repair scams, financial exploitation . . . plus speak with Shawn Mosch of Scam Victims United!

http://portlandscamjam.com/

You can also go to http://www.chuckwhitlock.com/scamjam.html to see footage from past events.

Shawn Mosch
Co-Founder of www.ScamVictimsUnited.com

Find us on Twitter, Facebook and more through
http://www.retaggr.com/page/ShawnMosch

Scam Jam 2009

Please join us in Portland, Oregon for Scam Jam 2009!

Learn how to protect yourself from ID theft, investment fraud, repair scams, financial exploitation . . . plus speak with Shawn Mosch of Scam Victims United!

http://portlandscamjam.com/

You can also go to http://www.chuckwhitlock.com/scamjam.html to see footage from past events.

Shawn Mosch
Co-Founder of ScamVictimsUnited.com

Find us on Twitter, Facebook and more through
http://www.retaggr.com/page/ShawnMosch