Scheme - Shore News Network

Former Boston Police Officer Charged in Overtime Fraud Scheme

Press ReleaseOctober 4, 20210

BOSTON – A former Boston Police officer has been charged and has agreed to plead guilty in connection with an ongoing investigation of overtime fraud at the Boston Police Department’s (BPD) evidence warehouse. Thomas Nee, 64, of Quincy, agreed to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit theft concerning programs receiving federal funds and one count of embezzlement from an agency receiving federal funds. A plea hearing has not yet been scheduled. According to charging documents, from at least January 2015 through February 2019, Nee submitted false and fraudulent overtime slips for overtime hours that he did not

Boerne Man Sentenced for Ponzi Scheme with over $7.4 M in Losses

Press ReleaseOctober 1, 20210

SAN ANTONIO – A Boerne man was sentenced yesterday to 135 months in prison and ordered to pay $7,424,927.10 in restitution for running a Ponzi scheme. According to court documents, Victor Farias, 48, owned and operated Integrity Aviation & Leasing (IAL). Farias used IAL to perpetuate a Ponzi scheme resulting in net losses to victims of over $7.4 million. Farias persuaded victims to invest in IAL by misrepresenting that investors’ funds would be used to purchase aircraft engines and that the aircraft engines would be leased to airlines for profit. In addition, Farias also told investors he would not pay

Passaic County Man Admits Role in Illegal Money Transmitting Scheme

Press ReleaseSeptember 28, 20210

NEWARK, N.J. – A Passaic County, New Jersey man today admitted his role in an illegal money transmitting business, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael Honig announced. Willy Cruz-Bonilla, 24, of Paterson, New Jersey, pleaded guilty by videoconference before U.S. District Judge Katharine S. Hayden to a criminal information charging him with aiding and abetting an illegal money transmitting business. According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court: From August 2016 through August 2017, Cruz-Bonilla accepted over $2.5 million in cash and purchased over 90 cashier’s checks at local bank branches in New Jersey and elsewhere. The investigation

Wenham Man Charged with Fraud Scheme Related to COVID-19 Pandemic Relief

Press ReleaseSeptember 28, 20210

BOSTON – A Wenham man was arrested today in connection with a scheme to obtain fraudulent Paycheck Protection Program funds made available under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act by submitting false applications. James Joseph Cohen, 58, was charged with one count of bank fraud. Cohen was released on conditions following an initial appearance in federal court in Boston. According to the charging documents, between April 2020 and September 2021, Cohen submitted six false applications to financial institutions and to the Small Business Administration to obtain pandemic-related relief funds on behalf of companies that he controlled. It

Hillsboro Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Mail and Identity Theft Scheme

Press ReleaseSeptember 27, 20210

PORTLAND, Ore.—A Hillsboro, Oregon man was sentenced to federal prison today for stealing hundreds of pieces of residential mail throughout the Portland Metropolitan Area and using the personal identity of one local resident to purchase a luxury car. Dwayne Leroy Daan, 42, was sentenced to 90 months in federal prison and three years’ supervised release. According to court documents, between February and May 2020, Daan stole more than 800 pieces of mail from residences in Portland, Beaverton, West Linn, Milwaukee, and Hillsboro, Oregon. Some of the mail was stolen using a counterfeit U.S. Postal Service arrow key. On April 20,

Edmonds, Washington business owner pleads guilty to wire fraud in connection with her arson for insurance scheme

Press ReleaseSeptember 27, 20210

Seattle —An Edmonds, Washington, business owner pleaded guilty today to wire fraud related to the April 30, 2018, fire at her business, CJN Miniatures & More, a dollhouse, miniatures, collectibles, and antiques shop, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Connie L. Bigelow, 53, is scheduled for sentencing by U.S. District Judge Robert S. Lasnik on December 17, 2021 at 10am. In the plea agreement, Bigelow admits she set fire to her business to collect insurance money as the store was struggling to make enough money to pay the rent. Bigelow moved her business, CJN Miniatures LLC, into the building

Brooklyn Man Admits Role In Scheme To Defraud New Jersey Banks By Depositing $1 Million In Stolen Checks

Press ReleaseSeptember 27, 20210

NEWARK, N.J. – A Brooklyn, New York, man today admitted his role in a scheme to defraud banks of more than $1 million using stolen and counterfeited checks and stolen identities, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig announced. Frank Ambrosio, 36, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Brian R. Martinotti to an information charging him with one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft. According to the documents filed in this case and statements made in court: Ambrosio and his conspirators, including Benjamin Rich and Felix Alamo, agreed to defraud banks across New

Miami Man Sentenced for Healthcare Fraud Kickback Scheme

Press ReleaseSeptember 27, 20210

ABINGDON, Va. – A Miami, Florida man was sentenced last week to five months in prison and five months of home confinement for conspiring with another man to pay and receive kickbacks. In addition to home confinement, he will pay $66,000 in monetary penalties and will be permanently excluded from participating in federal healthcare programs. According to court documents, Michael Olshavsky, conspired to receive and pay kickbacks to encourage urine drug screen testing performed by a lab in Florida. Some of the testing referred to the lab was paid for by Medicare, Virginia Medicaid, and TennCare. Co-conspirator John Linke was

Former Analyst Charged With $8 Million Insider Trading Scheme For Front-Running Employer’s Pending Trades

Press ReleaseSeptember 23, 20210

Audrey Strauss, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Michael J. Driscoll, the Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), announced the unsealing of a Complaint charging SERGEI POLEVIKOV with securities fraud, wire fraud, and investment company fraud in connection with his fraudulent scheme to misappropriate confidential information about pending trades by his employer, an investment adviser, on behalf of its investment company clients. POLEVIKOV was arrested last night and will be presented this afternoon before Magistrate Judge James L. Cott. Manhattan U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss said:

Mason County Contract Mail Carrier pleads guilty to vehicle smuggling scheme

Press ReleaseSeptember 20, 20210

Tacoma – A 48– year-old Mason County, Washington resident pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to three federal felonies related to a smuggling scheme and possession of child [censored]ography, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Christopher M. Cox pleaded guilty to: smuggling goods into the U.S.; making false statements related to the Clean Air Act; and possession of child [censored]ography. Cox will be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Robert J. Bryan on December 10, 2021. According to the plea agreement, between approximately 2015 and January 2019, Cox falsified the required paperwork on two dozen vehicles he

Virginia Beach Investment Advisor and Williamsburg Attorney Sentenced for $25 Million Nationwide Investment Fraud Scheme

Press ReleaseSeptember 20, 20210

NORFOLK, Va. – A former Virginia Beach investment advisor was sentenced today to 35 years in prison, following last week’s sentencing of his Williamsburg-based attorney to 10 years in prison, for their roles in a nationwide investment fraud scheme that resulted in over $25 million in losses to more than 300 victims, most of whom were elderly. “These defendants and their co-conspirators are responsible for orchestrating an extraordinarily serious nationwide scheme to defraud hundreds of investors out of over $25 million,” said Raj Parekh, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. “Driven by their voracious greed, the defendants

Former State Department Employee Pleads Guilty To Honest Services Fraud Scheme

Press ReleaseSeptember 20, 20210

Audrey Strauss, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Michael Speckhardt, the Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of State, Office of Inspector General (“State Department OIG”), and Thomas Fattorusso, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation, New York Field Office (“IRS-CI”), announced that MAY SALEHI, a former State Department employee, pled guilty today to conspiracy to commit honest services fraud. SALEHI was a longtime State Department employee who was involved in evaluating bids for critical overseas government construction projects such as U.S. embassies and consulates. SALEHI gave confidential

New York builder gets up to 7 years in prison for defrauding homebuyers out of $1 million

Adam DevineSeptember 18, 20210

NEW YORK – New York Attorney General Letitia James and New York State Police Superintendent Kevin P. Bruen today announced the sentencing of Shawn M. VanVeghten (39, of Saratoga Springs) for defrauding homebuyers, business owners, a financial lender, and the beneficiary of a special needs trust out of more than $1 million to finance his own personal and business expenses. VanVeghten’s multi-year scheme — that took place between 2016 and 2020 — left many homebuyers across upstate New York without the ability to get into their homes when promised, if at all. Today, before the Honorable James A. Murphy, III

Attorney General James and DOI Commissioner Garnett Announce Arrest and Indictment of Group for $15 Million Bid-Rigging Scheme That Defrauded Public Benefits Programs

Breaking Local News ReportSeptember 10, 20210

New York – New York Attorney General Letitia James and New York City Department of Investigation Commissioner Margaret Garnett today announced the indictment and arrest of 10 individuals and corporations for operating a two decades-long bid-rigging scheme. The 17-count indictment, which was unsealed today in the New York County State Supreme Court, before the Honorable Curtis Farber, charges the defendants with submitting thousands of false and inflated bids to the New York state Office of Victim Services (OVS) and the New York City Human Resources Administration (HRA) for moving and storage services intended to aid public benefits recipients, domestic violence survivors,