Tag Archives: scams

Via press release from the SEC: The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced charges against Kim Kardashian for touting on social media a crypto asset security offered and sold by EthereumMax without disclosing the payment she received for the promotion. Kardashian agreed to settle the charges, pay $1.26 million in penalties, disgorgement, and interest, and cooperate with the Commission’s ongoing …

The Jackson Clarion-Ledger reports: After Mississippi spent millions of dollars in welfare money on Brett Favre’s pet project, a university volleyball arena, the retired NFL quarterback tried two years later to get additional cash from the state’s welfare agency for another sports facility, new court documents show. The governor at the time, Republican Phil Bryant, texted in 2019 with Favre, …

The New York Times reports: A jury in a federal civil case on Thursday found that Project Veritas, a conservative group known for its deceptive tactics, had violated wiretapping laws and fraudulently misrepresented itself as part of a lengthy sting operation against Democratic political consultants. The jury awarded the consulting firm, Democracy Partners, $120,000. The decision amounted to a sharp …

From the Justice Department: Michael Bostock, 54, of Nampa, Idaho, and Eric Bostock, 47, of Riverside, California, each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. According to court documents, Michael Bostock was the founder and CEO of California Technical Academy (CTA), a VA-approved, for-profit school that …

The Minneapolis Star-Tribune reports: The director of the Feeding Our Future nonprofit and 46 other people have been charged in what federal prosecutors say was a “massive scheme” to defraud the government of more than $250 million meant to feed needy children during the COVID-19 pandemic. In a news conference in Minneapolis on Tuesday, U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger described it …

The Texas Tribune reports: A defamation and computer fraud lawsuit filed this week against Texas-based True the Vote asks a judge to essentially determine whether the election integrity group’s campaign against a small election vendor constitutes slanderous lies or a participation in criminal acts. The suit was brought by Konnech Inc., a small elections logistics company based in Michigan. It …

The Kansas City Star reports: Former Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, the Republican candidate for state attorney general, resigned Friday from the board of directors of We Build the Wall after the nonprofit organization was indicted on allegations of money laundering, conspiracy and fraud. New York state prosecutors unsealed an indictment against former Trump adviser Steve Bannon on Thursday, …

The Daily Beast reports: A New Jersey man who raised $400,000 on GoFundMe with a fake story about a homeless man has been sentenced to five years in prison. Mark D’Amico, who pled guilty to misapplication of entrusted property in 2019, will serve time in New Jersey state prison concurrent with his previous 27-month federal sentence, county prosecutors said Friday. …

Ars Technica reports: Attorneys general from all 50 states have created an Anti-Robocall Litigation Task Force “to investigate and take legal action against the telecommunications companies responsible for bringing a majority of foreign robocalls into the United States,” they announced yesterday. In the task force’s first action, it “issued 20 civil investigative demands to 20 gateway providers and other entities …

Via press release: Today, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) took action against U.S. Bank for illegally accessing its customers’ credit reports and opening checking and savings accounts, credit cards, and lines of credit without customers’ permission. U.S. Bank pressured and incentivized its employees to sell multiple products and services to its customers, including imposing sales goals as part of …

The Christian Post reports: A nonprofit organization called the House of Prayer, a chain of schools that students branded as a cult, has been accused of recruiting veterans and active service members and then bilking them out of more than $7 million in GI Bill benefits and disability checks to pay for Bible classes that were not accredited. On June …

Bloomberg News reports: The Federal Communications Commission has ordered phone companies to stop carrying traffic related to robocalls about scam auto warranties. US voice service providers must now “take all necessary steps to avoid carrying this robocall traffic,” or provide a report outlining how they’re mitigating the traffic, the FCC’s Robocall Response Team said in a statement on Thursday. The …

Courthouse News reports: A Southern California pharmacist was sentenced to more than 11 years in federal prison after a jury convicted him of trying to seek $27 million in pandemic relief loans for companies that had no employees. Robert Benlevi, 53, of Encino was given a 135-month sentence Tuesday. He had been found guilty this past March of multiple counts …

From the Justice Department: A criminal complaint was unsealed today in Brooklyn federal court charging Sherry Xue Li and Lianbo Wang with wire fraud conspiracy, money laundering conspiracy and conspiracy to defraud the United States by obstructing the Federal Election Commission’s (FEC) administration of campaign finance laws. Li and Wang, both naturalized U.S. citizens, were arrested earlier today in Oyster …

Reuters reports: U.S. crypto lender Celsius Network said on Wednesday it had filed for bankruptcy in New York, becoming the latest victim in the cryptocurrency sector of a dramatic plunge in token prices. New Jersey-based Celsius froze withdrawals last month, citing “extreme” market conditions, cutting off access to savings for individual investors and sending tremors through the crypto market. In …

NBC News reports: Jen Shah, the “Real Housewives of Salt Lake City” star charged with running a nationwide telemarketing fraud scheme, pleaded guilty in federal court Monday morning, reversing her previous plea. In front of Judge Sidney Stein shortly after 10:30 a.m., Shah entered into an agreement with federal prosecutors, changing her plea to guilty to a count of conspiracy …

The Washington Post reports: Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich has spent months groundlessly telling Republicans that they can be on “Trump’s Team” or “Endorse Trump for President in 2024” by giving to his U.S. Senate campaign. “Are you turning your back on Pres. Trump?” one Brnovich fundraising ad asked last year. “Renew your 2022 membership before it is too late.” …

NBC News reports: The Edwardses were Christian missionaries from Canada who lived in Turkey for many years and moved to Florida in 2019. On paper they ran a faith-based charity with a high-minded mission: to “communicate Christian love in doctrine and service to the poor.” But by the fall of 2020, the family of four — dad Evan; mom Mary …

Axios reports: The FBI has offered a $100,000 reward in its search for Ruja Ignatova, the so-called “Cryptoqueen” who allegedly helped defraud investors out of $4 billion with a cryptocurrency scam. Ignatova was added to the FBI’s list of the 10 most-wanted fugitives this week. The FBI is asking for any information about the alleged fraudster, who disappeared in 2017. …

From the Justice Department: A New Jersey man pleaded guilty to various charges stemming from his sale of more than $2.7 million worth of various unregistered pesticides to numerous victims based on false representations that these products were registered pesticides with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and on EPA’s “List N: Disinfectants for Use Against SARS-CoV-2” that EPA deemed to …