Information for Victims in Large Cases

This case involves a third-party data processor (Godfrey), who helped fraudulent merchants make small, unauthorized withdrawals from the bank accounts of hundreds of thousands of victims.  Godfrey did this through his business, Check Site, which worked directly with banks that would not have worked with the fraudulent merchants directly.  Godfrey also helped the fraudulent merchants to conceal their activity from the banks through various means.

On September 26, 2014, Brian Howard set fire to the Chicago Air Traffic Control Center in Aurora, Illinois.   The fire resulted in widespread cancellations and delays in air travel throughout the country.

 

Chad Kligman,  31, in the Philadelphia area was recently charged with running a multi-million dollar telemarketing scam.  According to the information, the defendants duped more than 70,000 people into buying what they falsely marketed as a general-purpose credit card that customers could use to buy merchandise over the internet and improve their credit.

Adrian Rubin,  in the Philadelphia area was recently charged with running a multi-million dollar telemarketing scam. According to the information, the defendants duped more than 70,000 people into buying what they falsely marketed as a general-purpose credit card that customers could use to buy merchandise over the internet and improve their credit.

Operation Scams-R-Us involves a transnational organized crime enterprise operating numerous financial fraud schemes via the internet. This case involves mass marketing fraud over job and dating websites, including romance scams, re-shipping of merchandise purchased with stolen credit cards, using fraudulent U.S. postal and other carrier labels, counterfeit and fraudulent check scams, work-at-home and secret shopper scams. Victims believed they were conducting legitimate work such as at-home payroll services or remailing of electronic items for charities to South Africa and Nigeria. Victims were asked to withdraw money at ATMs using prepaid cards and forward money to others via MoneyGram and Western Union. U.S. citizens identities, personal information, bank and financial information were stolen and used to obtain credit cards that were used to take cash advances and purchase mobile phones and other electronic devices.

Jeffrey Robert Bonner owned and operated “call centers”, located in San Jose, Costa Rica, which he and his co-defendants used to defraud United States residents, typically over the age of 55, by deceiving them into believing that they had won prizes in a “sweepstakes contest.” The indictment alleges that Jeffrey Robert Bonner, Cody Trevor Burgsteiner, Darra Lee Shephard, and their co-conspirators made calls to victims from Costa Rica. Victims were informed that to receive their “prize,” they were to wire, via Western Union, thousands of dollars for a purported “refundable insurance fee” to a so-called “insurance entity” in Costa Rica. When victims questioned the legitimacy of the operation, they were given phone numbers purportedly to United States government agents who falsely reassured the victims that they had, in fact, won a sweepstakes prize. The co-conspirators then allegedly continued to solicit victims to send more money until their victims’ funds were depleted.

Between approximately October 2009 through October 2013, the defendants used a Swiss corporation known as Malom Group AG to promote investments in European equities and debt offerings, which they said would yield high rates of return. The indictment alleges that the defendants created and provided to investors fake bank statements representing that Malom Group AG had large deposit balances at prominent European banks. The defendants collected payments of between $200,000 and $1.2 million per investor but did not put the funds toward the advertised investments. Instead, the defendants used the money for their own purposes.

According to court documents, Don Langford and others concealed the true value of TierOne’s loan and real estate portfolio and provided falsely inflated figures in its required reports to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS).  Specifically, Don Langford admitted that he used outdated property appraisals and rejected new appraisals that would have required TierOne to mark down the value of its real estate holdings. In addition, Langford admitted that he and others delayed seeking new appraisals to conceal the depreciating value of its loan collateral, and restructured loan terms to disguise the borrowers’ inability to make timely interest and principal payments. As a result, Langford admitted that he and others were able to hide millions of dollars in losses from regulators and investors.

According to court documents, James Laphen and others concealed the true value of TierOne’s loan and real estate portfolio and provided falsely inflated figures in its required reports to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS).  Specifically, Laphen admitted that he used outdated property appraisals and rejected new appraisals that would have required TierOne to mark down the value of its real estate holdings. In addition, Laphen admitted that he and others delayed seeking new appraisals to conceal the depreciating value of its loan collateral, and restructured loan terms to disguise the borrowers’ inability to make timely interest and principal payments. As a result, Laphen admitted that he and others were able to hide millions of dollars in losses from regulators and investors.

Gilbert G. Lundstrom was the CEO of TierOne Bank from 1999 to January 2010. According to allegations in the indictment, he and others concealed the true value of TierOne’s loan and real estate portfolio. They also provided falsely inflated figures in their reporting to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS). Specifically, Lundstrom and others allegedly used outdated property appraisals and rejected new appraisals that would have required TierOne to mark down the value of its real estate holdings. In addition, Lundstrom and others allegedly delayed seeking new appraisals to conceal the depreciating value of its loan collateral, and restructured loan terms to disguise the borrowers’ inability to make timely interest and principal payments. As a result, Lundstrom and others were allegedly able to hide millions of dollars in losses from regulators and investors.

William B. Aossey was convicted by a federal jury of conspiring between around 2007 and 2010 to commit mail and wire fraud, sell misbranded meat, and related crimes.  Aossey was also convicted of seven counts of making materially false statements on export certificates, and seven counts of wire fraud.

William B. Aossey was convicted by a federal jury of conspiring between about 2007 and 2010 to commit mail and wire fraud, sell misbranded meat, and related crimes.  Aossey was also convicted of seven counts of making materially false statements on export certificates, and seven counts of wire fraud.  In a related case, Midamar Corporation; Islamic Services of America; ISA, Inc.; and Jalel Aossey, pleaded guilty to conspiring between about 2007 and 2012 to commit mail and wire fraud, sell misbranded meat, and related crimes.  Defendant Yahya Nasser Aossey pleaded guilty to two lesser counts relating to his responsibility for the sale of misbranded meat as a responsible corporate official.