fraud

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Treasurer for Slain Officers Stole for Her Son: Police

Lorraine Shanley, 68, faces up to 30 years in prison

(Newser) - The treasurer at a charity for fallen New York City police is accused of stealing about $410,000—including $1,400 for Barbra Streisand tickets, the New York Times reports. Lorraine Shanley, 68, was arrested Thursday and could face 30 years in prison. A volunteer treasurer at Survivors of the...

Woman Who Faked Pregnancy Faces Charges

Virginia's Elizabeth Jones led couple to believe they could adopt her nonexistent baby

(Newser) - A Virginia woman who admitted faking a pregnancy and lying to a couple hoping to adopt her baby now faces criminal charges, reports WCYB . Scott County prosecutors filed felony larceny charges against Elizabeth Jones, who has acknowledged that she tricked Laura and Matt Trayte from Lake Forest, California, into thinking...

Cops: She Set Her Price, Then Cut Off Own Hand

Slovenian woman allegedly stood to gain more than $835K

(Newser) - A woman in Slovenia claims she slipped and accidentally cut off her own hand while sawing branches off a tree. Police, however, say the 21-year-old chopped off her hand on purpose, thinking it would set her up for life. For police, the life and injury insurance taken out in advance...

Hollywood Celebs Accused in College Admissions Scam

Lori Loughlin and Felicity Huffman among those facing charges

(Newser) - A new scandal has emerged involving Hollywood celebs, but it's one you might not have expected. Actresses Felicity Huffman and Lori Loughlin are among those accused of participating in college-admissions fraud on behalf of their children, reports NBC News . Essentially, wealthy parents used shady tactics including bribes, made-up sports...

Smollett's 'TV Dad' Responds to Allegations

Terrence Howard says his co-actor 'could never even conceive' of faking an attack

(Newser) - "All your lil homies got you. We love the hell outta you." That's Empire star Terrence Howard's caption on an Instagram video of Jussie Smollett playing with a small child—possibly Howard's son, USA Today reports. Howard, who plays Smollett's father on the Fox...

She Insulted Michelle Obama. Now, a Guilty Plea

Pamela Taylor, who called ex-first lady 'ape in heels,' admits taking money from FEMA

(Newser) - "The flood was a natural disaster. Stealing from FEMA is a manmade disaster." Per a DOJ release , that's US Attorney Mike Stuart speaking on the case of Pamela Taylor, a 57-year-old from West Virginia who made headlines in 2016 for calling then-first lady Michelle Obama an "...

Love Seekers Lost $143M to Scammers in 2018: FTC

That's more than any other type of consumer fraud found by the agency last year

(Newser) - If you wanted the Federal Trade Commission's take on Valentine's Day, here it is: Beware of getting scammed seeking love online. The warning comes via the agency's latest revelation, which cites more than 21,000 reports of people getting swindled by internet "paramours" in 2018, NPR...

'Squeaky-Clean' Guy Accused in $750K Super Bowl Scam

Ketan Shah seems like an unlikely perpetrator

(Newser) - A Georgia man has apparently swindled his family, friends, and personal connections—and even his own mother—out of more than $750,000 in a Super Bowl ticket scam, Deadspin reports. Seems Ketan Shah, a prominent Gwinnett County businessman and father of two, sold premium tickets to nearly a dozen...

Woman Tries to Collect Lottery Winnings, Gets Arrested

Police say she used a stolen credit card to buy the ticket

(Newser) - A Canadian woman thought she'd won the lottery—and technically, she had—until police discovered the winning ticket was purchased with a stolen credit card. The unidentified 33-year-old woman was arrested in St. John's, Newfoundland, as she tried to cash in the ticket at an Atlantic Lottery office,...

US Hits Huawei, CFO With Criminal Charges

How this affects the US-China trade war will remain to be seen

(Newser) - The US Department of Justice unsealed a 13-count indictment against Chinese tech giant Huawei on Monday, including against two of its affiliates and its chief financial officer, the AP and Fox News report. The felony charges, which came in the form of two separate indictments—one a 10-count grand jury...

She Conned Dozens Out of Savings, All to Fund a Lavish Lifestyle
As She Lived
Lavish Life, Dozens
Lost Life Savings
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Jan 26, 2019 6:30 AM CST

As She Lived Lavish Life, Dozens Lost Life Savings

Keisha Williams was sentenced Friday

(Newser) - For four years, Keisha Williams convinced more than 50 people to hand over their savings to invest in Austrian healthcare software she said she had purchased, but still needed to pay taxes and fees on in order to get it out of "escrow." Authorities say she promised would-be...

She'd Helped This Teen Before. This Time, the Cops Came

School superintendent charged with fraud after using health insurance to help sick student

(Newser) - An Indiana school superintendent who says she was worried about a sick student was hit with fraud charges after cops say she used her insurance to get medical treatment and meds for him. Per KTXL , court records say 48-year-old Casey Smitherman picked up the 15-year-old, who had a sore throat,...

Couple Allegedly Stole $5M to Prep for 'Fall of US Government'

Florida pair face up to 30 years in prison if convicted

(Newser) - A Florida couple is accused of stealing $5 million allegedly used to prepare "for the fall of the US government." An arrest warrant states Gretchen Camp of Jacksonville admitted to stealing from Swisher International, where she worked as a tax manager, partly because her unemployed husband "wanted...

Alleged Fraudster Made a Really Poor Font Choice

Fonts released in 2017 used in documents with older dates

(Newser) - If Cambria and Calibri sound to you like a crime-fighting duo, you're not entirely off. Actually Microsoft fonts, they're responsible for exposing an alleged fraud scheme in Canada, where Gerald McGoey's company, Look Communications, went bankrupt at the end of 2017. Ordered to repay $5.6 million...

Were We Fooled by the 'Oldest Person Ever'?

Researchers claim Yvonne Calment assumed her mother's identity

(Newser) - You likely know Jeanne Calment as the world's oldest recorded person. It's a title widely used since Calment's 1997 death in France, coming 122 years and 164 days after her purported birth in 1875. It's also a fraud, according to mathematician Nicolai Zak and gerontologist Valeri...

As a Fire Raged, She Allegedly Saw Opportunity

Cops say Ashley Bemis fraudulently collected fire relief donations

(Newser) - As a wildfire tore through some 23,000 acres in Southern California over the summer, Ashley Bemis was soliciting donations of money and other items via social media to benefit the firefighters battling the blaze. She even posted photos of her firefighter husband, Shane Goodman, on social media, saying that...

US Woman Could Get Life for Jamaica Lottery Scam

'Her hands were all over the conspiracy'

(Newser) - A federal judge in North Dakota on Monday ordered a Rhode Island woman convicted of funneling lottery scam money between the US and Jamaica to remain jailed pending a February sentencing hearing where she could face a stiffer sentence than the alleged mastermind, the AP reports. "Her hands were...

Woman's Sentence for Fudging School Record: 'Inhumane'

Now Greece and the world are paying attention

(Newser) - A woman in Greece has roused her nation—and now the world—after getting a 10-year sentence for altering her elementary-school record, the New York Times reports. "This decision is not simply inhumane," says the Hellenic League for Human Rights. "It is another very indicative sign of...

They Thought They Were Adopting. Then, 'the Rug Was Pulled'

Fla. woman accused of promising her unborn child to 2 different couples, defrauding them of $19K

(Newser) - A couple thought they'd be adopting in the fall the baby Christina Bay was carrying, and they signed a contract in the spring and handed over nearly $15,000 to pay for the Florida woman's living arrangements in Daytona Beach during her pregnancy. The problem was, police say,...

Dad's Alleged Role in Kids' Deaths 'Shocks the Conscience'

Ali Elmezayen faces fraud charges given insufficient evidence of murder

(Newser) - What at first appeared to be a tragic accident is now labeled a "coldhearted scheme." Two children, ages 8 and 13, died on April 9, 2015, when the car their father was driving sped off a Los Angeles wharf and sank. Ali Elmezayen, whose window was open, quickly...

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