White Collar Crimes ARCHIVES

A man previously convicted for securities fraud has agreed to settle charges leveled against him by the Securities and Exchange Commission. Investigators took action after detecting his manipulation of stock prices for three microcap companies after he had been released under supervision for his earlier conviction. The director of the New York regional office for the SEC said that the agency had protected the investing public with this investigation.

Companies in New York that import fake merchandise or falsify records to avoid paying import duties generally have the upper hand with authorities. The sheer scale of imports entering the country makes comprehensive inspections nearly impossible, according to a recent study that examined trade fraud. Every year, $2.71 trillion worth of products enter the country. Researchers analyzed federal prosecutions of importers between 2000 and 2016 and calculated that prosecutions had increased by 900 percent. Their study concluded that cooperation among federal agencies and increased prosecution under the False Claims Act might hold more importers accountable.

A New York resident who bribes a witness or a public official may face serious repercussions. The definition of a "public official" may include a variety of categories including a member of Congress, a juror or a person employed by a department of the government.

The federal trial of an alleged ex-mob boss turned restaurateur opened on Jan. 30 in New York. The man is accused of collecting gambling debts for an East Coast crime syndicate and running a health care fraud that involved bribing doctors to write fake prescriptions. The man's defense attorney says he is being framed by other people who have an interest in trying to benefit themselves with the accusations. According to the man's attorney, he simply has a gambling problem that has made him vulnerable.

The consequences of a conviction for identity theft are serious and charges should be vigorously challenged.

New York residents who have heard about the ongoing trials of former pharmaceutical executive Martin Shkreli may be interested to learn that, on June 26, more than 100 potential jurors in his fraud case ruled themselves out. The dismissed jurors said that they would be unable to reach an impartial decision due to his notoriety.

On May 9, a New York man was indicted on multiple fraud charges. According to the Brooklyn District Attorney's office, the 36-year-old was accused of stealing six house titles that belonged to owners that had died or abandoned their properties.

Responding to evidence gathered by the New York Department of Taxation and Finance, the attorney general pressed charges against two women accused of filing tax returns with false information. Authorities arrested the women, ages 33 and 34, of New York City and the Bronx, respectively, after they allegedly added fictitious nieces and nephews as dependents to tax returns in order to qualify for higher tax refunds.

A 51-year-old man from Oceanside faces the possibility of decades in prison if convicted of wire fraud and wire fraud conspiracy charges stemming from his alleged Ponzi scheme. The FBI and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York worked in partnership with the Nassau County District Attorney's Office to investigate the man's activities over several years. Their findings indicate that he used investors' money to finance his gambling and otherwise enrich himself.

A New York insurance broker from Albany has been sentenced for his role in a $1 million securities fraud case. The man entered guilty pleas to securities fraud, failing to file state income tax returns and grand larceny. He was sentenced to serve nine years in prison.